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A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 










BOOKS FOR GIRLS 
By AMY BELL MARLOWE 

iamo. Cloth. Illustrated. Price per volume, 
60 cents, postpaid 

THE OLDEST OF FOUR 

Or Natalie’s Way Out 

THE GIRLS OF HILLCREST FARM 
Or The Secret of the Rocks 
A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Or With the Girls of Pine wood Hall 
THE GIRL FROM SUNSET RANCH 
Or Alone in a Great City 
WYN’S CAMPING DAYS 

Or The Outing of the Go-Ahead Club 

GROSSET & DUNLAP 

PUBLISHERS NEW YORK 








































































































































































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*• 















GOODNESS ME! YOU’RE A PERFECT MISS NOBODY.” 

Frontispiece ( Page 98). 


A LITTLE MISS 
NOBODY 

OR 

WITH THE GIRLS 
OF PINEWOOD HALL 


BY 

AMY BELL MARLOWE 

AUTHOR OF 

THE OLDEST OF FOUR, THE GIRLS OF HILLCREST 
FARM, WYN’S CAMPING DAYS, ETC. 


Illustrated 


NEW YORK 

GROSSET & DUNLAP 

PUBLISHERS 


• Y ' V . V 


Copyright, 1914, by 
GROSSET & DUNLAP 


A Little Miss Nobody 



AUG 2/ 1914 


©CI.A380115 ^ . 

*-0 V. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

I. 

Miss Nobody from Nowhere 

PAGE 

I 

II. 

The Boy in the Millrace . 

14 

III. 

On the Way to Pinewood 

23 

IV. 

Bearding the Lion . 

29 

V. 

Nancy’s Curious Experience 

39 

VI. 

The Unrivaled Scorch . 

47 

VII. 

First Impressions . 

57 

VIII. 

The Madame .... 

65 

IX. 

Cora Rathmore 

74 

X. 

Who Is She, Anyway? . 

84 

XI. 

On Clinton River . 

99 

XII. 

The First Advance 

112 

XIII. 

It Proves Disastrous 

127 

XIV. 

Heaps of Trouble . 

138 

XV. 

A Great Deal Happens 

150 

XVI. 

It Comes to a Head 

162 

XVII. 

A Rift in the Clouds . 

176 

XVIII. 

Better Times .... 

*-n 

00 

XIX. 

The Races .... 

202 


V 


vi 

CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 


PAGE 

XX. 

The Freshman Election 

212 

XXI. 

Senator Montgomery . 

222 

XXII. 

Is It a Clue? . 

235 

XXIII. 

Back to School Again . 

247 

XXIV. 

The Thanksgiving Masque . 

260 

XXV. 

Getting On 

274 

XXVI. 

Mr. Gordon Again . . 

280 

XXVII. 

The Man in Gray Again 

293 

XXVIII. 

Scorch “ On the Job ” . 

302 

XXIX. 

All About Nancy . 

310 

XXX. 

No Longer a Nobody r . 

319 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


CHAPTER I 

MISS NOBODY FROM NOWHERE 

The girls at Higbee School that term had a 
craze for marking everything they owned with 
their monograms. Such fads run through schools 
like the measles. 

Their clothing, books, tennis rackets, school- 
bags — everything that was possible — blossomed 
with monograms, more or less ornate. 

Of course, some girls’ initials offered a wider 
scope than others’ for the expression of artistic 
ideas; but there wasn’t a girl in the whole school 
who couldn’t do something with her initials, save 
Nancy. 

“ N. N.” What could one do with “ N. N.”? 
It was simply impossible to invent an attractive- 
looking monogram with those letters. 

“ N. N. — Nancy Nelson — just Nobody from 
Nowhere,” quoth Nancy to Miss Trigg, the 
teacher and school secretary who, despite her 


2 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


thick spectacles and angular figure, displayed more 
of a motherly interest in Nancy than anybody else 
at Higbee School. 

Miss Prentice, the principal, never seemed to be 
interested in Nancy. The latter had nobody to 
“ write home to,” either good or bad about the 
school — so the principal did not have to worry 
about her. And it didn’t matter whether Nancy’s 
reports showed “ improvement ” or not — there 
was nobody to read them. 

Miss Trigg was also a lonely person; perhaps 
that was why she showed some appreciation for 
“ Miss Nobody from Nowhere.” Sometimes in 
the long summer vacation she and Nancy were 
alone at the school. That drew the two together 
a little. But Miss Trigg was a spinster of very, 
very uncertain age — saving that she couldn’t be 
young! — and it was the more surprising that she 
seemed to understand something of what the sore- 
hearted young girl felt. 

“ The really great people of this world — the 
worth-while people — have almost all been known 
by one name. There were many Caesars, but only 
one Casar , who crossed the Rubicon, and in his 
‘Commentaries’ said:- ‘All Gaul is divided into 
three parts.’ One never hears what Cleopatra’s 
other name was,” pursued Miss Trig g, with her 
queer smile. “ Whether Isabella of Spain — the 


MISS NOBODY FROM NOWHERE 3 

Isabella that made the voyages of Columbus pos- 
sible — had another name, or not, we do not in- 
quire. How many of us stop to think that the 
married name of the English Victoria — that great 
and good queen — was ‘ Victoria Wettin,’ and that 
for the years of her widowhood she was in fact 
‘ the Widow Wettin ’ ? 

“ The greatest king-maker the world ever saw 
— the man who turned all Europe topsy-turvy — 
was known only by one initial — and that your 
own, Nancy. Here! I will make you a more 
striking monogram than any of the other girls 
possess,” and quickly, with a few skilful strokes of 
her pencil, Miss Trigg drew a single “ N ” sur- 
rounded by a neat, though inverted, laurel wreath. 

“ Now your monogram will not conflict with 
Napoleon’s,” she said, with one of her rare 
laughs; “but it is quite distinctive. It stands 
for ‘ Nancy.’ Forget that ‘ Miss Nobody from 
Nowhere ’ chatter. You may be quite as impor- 
tant as any girl in the school — only you don’t know 
it now.” 

That was what really troubled Nancy Nelson. 
She was too cheerful and hopeful to really care 
because she couldn’t entwine the two initials of 
the only name she knew into an artistic bowknot ! 
It was because “ N. N.” really meant nothing. 

For Nancy didn’t know whether the name be- 


4 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


longed to her or not. She knew absolutely noth- 
ing about her identity — who she was, who her 
people had been — of course, it was safe to say 
she was an orphan — where she had lived before 
she came to the Higbee Endowed School when 
she was a little tot, who paid her tuition here, or 
what was to become of her when she was gradu- 
ated. 

And Nancy Nelson, now approaching the end 
of her last year at the school, was more and more 
persuaded that she should know r something about 
herself — something more than Miss Prentice, or 
Miss Trigg could tell her. 

Years before Nancy had listened to the story of 
her earlier life as it was whispered into her ear 
when she and Miss Trigg were alone together, 
just as though it was a story about some other little 
girl. 

One September day, just after the fall term had 
opened, a gentleman 'brought a tiny, rosy-cheeked, 
much beruffied little girl to Miss Prentice and 
asked the principal of Higbee School to take 
charge of the little one for a term of years — to 
bring her up, in fact, as far as she could be brought 
up and taught at that institution. 

This gentleman — who was a lawyer rather well 
known at that time in Malden, the small city 
in which the school was situated — could only say 


MISS NOBODY FROM NOWHERE 5 

that the little girl’s name was Nancy Nelson, that 
she had no parents nor other near relatives, and 
that he could assure the principal that the tuition 
and other bills would be paid regularly and that 
Nancy would have a small fund of spending 
money as she grew. 

Who she really was, where she had lived, the 
reason for the mystery that surrounded the affair, 
the lawyer would not, or could not explain. He 
had left Malden soon afterward, but was estab- 
lished in Cincinnati — and he met all Nancy’s bills 
promptly and asked each quarter-day after her 
health. But he showed ‘no further interest in 
the little girl. 

As for Nancy herself, she remembered nothing 
before her appearance at' the school. And that 
was not strange. She was a kindergartner when 
Miss Prentice accepted the responsibility of train- 
ing her — the very youngest and smallest girl who 
had ever come to Higbee School. 

Miss Prentice was too firm a disciplinarian to 
be a very warm-hearted woman. Save for Miss 
Trigg’s awkward attempts at motherliness, and 
the surreptitious hugs and'kisses of certain wom- 
anly servants about the school who pitied the 
lonely child, Nancy Nelson had experienced little 
affection. 

She was popular in a way with her fellow- 


6 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


pupils; yet there had always been a barrier be- 
tween her and the rest of the school. She was 
the refuge of the dull scholars, or of the little 
ones who needed help in their lessons; but Nancy 
never made a real chum . 

It was not the girl’s fault. She was heart- 
hungry for somebody to love, and somebody to 
love her. But circumstances seemed always to 
forbid. 

A new girl was scarcely settled at Higbee be- 
fore somebody pointed Nancy out to her as a 
girl who was “ peculiar.” Sometimes the story of 
Nancy’s coming to the school, and of her circum- 
stances, were sadly twisted. She was often looked 
upon as a combination of Cinderella and the 
Sleeping Princess. 

However that might be, it set Nancy in a class 
by herself. Girls came and went at Higbee. 
Some took the entire course and were graduated. 
But none save Nancy remained at the school from 
year’s end to year’s end. 

Miss Prentice saw to it that the girl had a 
sufficient supply of neat and serviceable dresses. 
She had all that she could possibly need, but little 
that she really wanted. 

When her spending money was increased mod- 
erately, Nancy was able to buy herself the little 
trifles that persons like Miss Prentice never re- 


MISS NOBODY FROM NOWHERE 7 

alize a girl’s longing for. Nancy’s private ex- 
penditures occasioned even Miss Trigg to say that 
she was “ light-minded ” and would never know 
how to spend money. 

They did not take into consideration that 
Nancy had nobody to give her the little trifles so 
dear to every growing girl’s heart. She never 
had a present. That is, nothing save some little 
things at Christmas from some of the smaller girls 
whom she had helped. Miss Prentice discouraged 
the giving of presents among the girls at Higbee. 
She said it occasioned jealousies, and “ odious 
comparisons ” of family wealth. 

Miss Prentice was a very good teacher, and 
she exerted a careful oversight over both the 
girls’ health and conduct. Most of the girls 
had their particular friends, and even the few 
other orphans beside Nancy in the school had 
those who loved * and cared for them. 

But here was a heart-hungry girl with abso- 
lutely no apparent future. The end of her last 
year at Higbee was approaching and neither 
Nancy, nor Miss Trigg, nor Miss Prentice her- 
self, knew the first thing about what was to “ be 
done with her.” 

Curiosity about herself — who she was, what 
was in store for her, and all — sometimes scorched 
Nancy Nelson’s mind like a devouring flame. She 


8 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


kept a deal of it to herself; it was making her a 
morose, secretive girl, instead of the open-hearted, 
frank character she was meant to be. Nancy’s 
future as : a girl and woman was in peril. 

She scarcely believed that the name she was 
known by was her own. Some time before she 
had begun to refer to herself as “ Miss Nobody 
from Nowhere.” It was continually on her 
mind. 

So Miss Trigg’s suggestion about the mono- 
gram was not entirely satisfactory to Nancy. It 
is all right to have brave thoughts about doing 
great deeds in the future; but — supposing there is 
no future? 

That’s the way it looked to Nancy Nelson. 
June was approaching and all the other girls of 
the graduating class were exchanging stories of 
what they were to do, where they were to go, and 
all about their future lives. But Nancy couldn’t 
tell a single thing that was going to happen to 
her after breakfast the day following graduation. 

Of course, Miss Prentice was not bound to keep 
her a minute longer than her contract called for. 
Nothing had been said by the lawyer in whose 
hands Nancy’s fate seemed to be, regarding his 
future intentions. He had acknowledged the 
school principal’s last letter at Easter, and that was 
all. 


MISS NOBODY FROM NOWHERE 9 

A girl who has spent all her days — almost — in 
a boarding school ,must of necessity possess some 
small amount of independence, at least. Al- 
though very young, Nancy felt perfectly able to 
start out into the world alone and make her way. 

Just how she should earn her living she did 
not know. But she had read story books. Some- 
times girls of her age were able to help house- 
wives do their work, or help take care of little 
children, or even be parcel-wrappers in big city 
stores. 

Of course she could not remain at the school. 
There would be nothing for her to do here. And 
Miss Prentice carried her pupils no farther than 
the grammar grades. 

Some of the other girls would begin in the 
autumn at other and more famous schools — col- 
lege preparatory schools, and the like. Nancy 
loved books, and she hoped for a college educa- 
tion, too; dimly, in some way, she hoped to find 
means of preparing for college. But how? That 
w r as the problem. 

One noon, as Nancy filed into the long, cool 
dining room, Miss Prentice, who often stood at 
the door to review the girls as they filed before 
her, tapped Nancy on the shoulder. 

“ My room after luncheon, Miss Nancy,” said 
the principal, severely. 


10 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


She always spoke severely, so this did not dis- 
turb the girl. But the latter was so anxious about 
her own affairs that she flushed deeply and only 
played with her food. 

Both of these things did not trouble Nancy. 
In the first place, she was very pretty when she 
blushed, having an olive complexion and dark, 
crisp hair which she wore in two plaits down her 
back. And she was so plump that the loss of 
luncheon wasn’t going to hurt her. 

She was glad when the bell rang for the girls to 
rise and listen to Miss Trigg’s murmured “ thanks 
for meat.” Then she ran eagerly over to the 
principal’s cottage and found Miss Prentice wait- 
ing for her. 

“ I have heard from Mr. Gordon,” began that 
lady. 

“My guardian!” gasped Nancy, clasping her 
hands. 

“ I do not know that he is your guardian,” re- 
sponded Miss Prentice, with an admonitory look. 
“ You must remember that he merely pays your 
fees here.” 

“Well!” breathed Nancy, trying to contain 
herself within bounds. 

“ He asks me to keep you here this summer as 
before,” continued the principal. 

“Oh!” 


MISS NOBODY FROM NOWHERE n 


“ He has made no other plans for tiding you 
over the summer,” went on the very practical lady. 
“ He objects to entering into arrangements with 
any other person for the brief time between your 
graduation here and your matriculation at Pine- 
wood Hall in September ” 

“Oh, Miss Prentice! Pinewood Hall!” cried 
Nancy, unable to restrain herself. 

She knew all about Pinewood Hall. It was 
one of the most popular preparatory schools in 
the Middle West. Nancy had never even 
dreamed that she would be allowed to attend such 
a select institution. 

“ I do wish you would restrain yourself, 
Nancy,” said the principal. “ They will think 
at Pinewood that you have had no proper training 
here, at all.” 

“ Oh, I beg pardon, Miss Prentice,” cried 
the girl. “ I really will try to be a credit to you 
if I go there.” 

“ I hope so,” observed the principal, grimly, 
and nodded as though she thought this terminated 
the interview. 

“ But, Miss Prentice ! Is — is that all he says? ” 
queried Nancy, anxiously. 

“ That you will remain here — if I agree, which 
I shall; Miss Trigg will look after you — until 
fall, when you will receive your transportation to 


12 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


Clintondale and will go there, prepared to con- 
tinue your studies.” 

“ And — noth — ing — more ? ” sighed Nancy, 
hopelessly. 

“Indeed! What more could you wish?” de- 
manded Miss Prentice, tartly. “ It seems to me 
you are a very fortunate girl indeed. Pinewood! 
There isn’t another girl in the class whose parents 
can afford to send her to such a fashionable pre- 
paratory institution.” 

“ I know, Miss Prentice. I ought to be grate- 
ful, I suppose,” admitted the girl, wearily. “ But 
— but I did so hope Mr. Gordon would write 
something about me — about who I am — about 
what I am going to be in life ” 

“I declare!” snapped the principal. “I call 
this downright ingratitude, Nancy Nelson. Sup- 
pose I wrote what you say to Mr. Gordon? And 
he should in turn transmit my report to — to the 
people who furnish the money for all this ” 

“ That’s just it! that’s just it, Miss Prentice! ” 
wailed the girl, suddenly bursting into tears. 
“Who furnishes the money? Why do they fur- 
nish it? Oh, dear! what have I done that I am 
treated like a colt to be broken instead of like a 
girl?; 

Miss Prentice was silenced for the moment. 
She looked down upon the girl’s bowed head, 


MISS NOBODY FROM NOWHERE 13 

and upon the young shoulders heaving with sobs, 
and a strange expression flitted for the moment 
across her grim face. 

Perhaps never before had the principal of 
Higbee School looked into Nancy’s heart and seen 
the real tragedy of her young life. 


CHAPTER II 


THE BOY IN THE MILLRACE 

That summer was much like other summers in 
Malden. Nancy had been graduated with some 
honor; but there was nobody to rejoice with her 
over her success. The school had been crowded 
on the last day with friends and parents of the 
other girls; there was not a soul who more than 
perfunctorily wished Nancy Nelson “ good luck.” 

The neighborhood of Higbee School was very 
quiet a week after the term closed. The serving 
force was greatly reduced; most of the big house 
was closed, and all the cottages. Even Miss 
Prentice, four days after graduation, started for 
Europe with a party of teachers, and Miss Trigg 
and Nancy were left practically alone. 

But the orphaned girl had something this sum- 
mer on which to feed her imagination. She was 
going to Pinewood Hall. And Pinewood Hall 
was exclusive, and on the very top wave of popu- 
larity. 

It cost a lot of money to go to that school, 
Miss Trigg had suggested to Miss Prentice to 
14 


THE BOY IN THE MILLRACE 15 

remind the lawyer that Nancy would need a more 
elaborate outfit of gowns, and Mr. Gordon had 
sent the extra money for that purpose without a 
word of objection. 

The thought had taken root in Nancy’s mind 
at last that she must be somebody of importance. 
At least, she was an heiress. Whether she owned 
a single relative, or not, she commanded money. 
That was something. 

Of course, the other girls at Higbee had al- 
ways looked down upon her and considered her 
“ a charity scholar;” but Nancy believed that at 
Pinewood Hall she could hold up her head with 
the best. 

Nobody would know her there. She would be- 
gin a fresh page of her history. She would make 
the girls love her for herself; it would not matter 
there that she had no near relatives. Mr. Henry 
Gordon, her guardian, must know all about her, 
and with regard to this gentleman the girl had a 
very grave determination in her mind — a deter- 
mination which she did not confide even to Miss 
Trigg. 

Nancy Nelson meant to see and speak with the 
lawyer before she went to Pinewood Hall. 

Whether he wanted to or not, Mr. Gordon 
must tell her something about herself. If she 
had relatives living, she wanted to know, at least, 


1 6 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


why they were ashamed of her. Or, if she was 
merely the ward of an estate, she wanted to know 
what the estate was — and how big it was. 

The girl had thought so much about her equiv- 
ocal position that her future troubled her. If 
there was just enough money to give her a college 
education, she wanted to know it. If she must 
prepare herself for taking some place at the end 
of her schooldays in the work-a-day world, she 
wanted to know that, too. 

These were practical thoughts for so young 
a girl; but Nancy Nelson was practical, despite 
her imagination. 

She had already looked up Clintondale on the 
map, and upon the railroad time-table. It was 
half a day’s ride east of Malden, and Cincinnati 
was one of the points where she changed cars. 

Although she had never traveled by train her- 
self, Nancy had heard the other girls exchanging 
experiences, and she knew that she could get a 
“ stop-over ” from the conductor of the train. 

She had seen one of Mr. Gordon’s letters which 
he had written Miss Prentice; the principal had 
shown it to her. 

At that time the girl had memorized the street 
and number printed at the top of the lawyer’s 
stiffly-worded communication. She would never 
forget “ No. 714 South Wall Street.” 


THE BOY IN THE MILLRACE 17 

That was the one secret Nancy Nelson kept 
hidden within her heart all that long summer 
while she waited with Miss Trigg, the secretary 
and general utility teacher, for the return of the 
principal of Higbee School and the beginning of 
her new life. 

Miss Trigg tried to be nice to her; indeed, she 
was nice to her after a fashion. But Miss Trigg’s 
pleasures were between bookcovers; Nancy Nel- 
son was too healthy a girl not to desire something 
of a more exciting nature than Roman history or 
higher mathematics on a long, hot summer after- 
noon. 

That was why she stole away from the deeply 
absorbed Miss Trigg on one such occasion late in 
August, when they had ridden out to Granville 
Park to spend an hour or two in the open. 

Granville Park bordered a good-sized pond, 
dammed at its lower end, where was an old mill 
site. An automobile road crossed the bridge that 
had been built here; but the mill had not been in 
commission for years. It was a quiet and pic- 
turesque spot. 

Just above the millrace was a quiet pool under 
the bank where great, fragrant water-lilies floated 
upon the surface. Those lilies always attracted 
Nancy. She wished she were a boy. Boys could 
do so many things forbidden to girls! 


i8 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


She longed to strip off her shoes and stockings 
and wade into the black water to obtain some of 
the lilies. She had no idea that, just beyond the 
little patch of marine plants, the bottom of the 
pond fell away abruptly, and that a current 
tugged stoutly for the millrace. 

On this particular day, when she had left Miss 
Trigg reading in her favorite summer-house high 
on the rocky hill, and Nancy had tripped lightly 
down to the path that skirted the pond’s steep 
edge, there was a boy doing just what she had so 
wished to do herself. 

He was a good-natured looking boy, with 
plump cheeks and a mass of light, curly hair that 
he probably hated, but Nancy thought it made 
him look “ too cute for anything.” 

He might have been three years her senior, and 
was a strong, healthy-looking youth. 

Nancy stopped in the fringe of bushes and 
watched him. She saw him pluck several of the 
long-stemmed beauties, and she wondered, if she 
showed herself when he came ashore, he would 
offer her some. 

Then she became aware of several voices in 
the neighborhood — girls’ voices. They seemed 
to be calling to the boy, for once he lifted his 
shining face and shouted something. 

Nancy looked keenly in the direction his eyes 


THE BOY IN THE MILLRACE 19 

took. Through the trees she saw that an auto- 
mobile stood on the bridge — or right at its be- 
ginning. The boy belonged to the automobile 
party. They had spied the lilies, and he had come 
down to wade into the pond for them. 

Of course he was getting them for the other 
girls — he would give none to Nancy. 

She could see the chauffeur, in his duster and 
goggles, standing in the road, too. But the 
girls who chatted so gaily, and shouted to the 
boy in the water, she could not see at all, try her 
best. 

The lad had now a great bunch of the water- 
lilies; but the girls above evidently wanted them 
all. They encouraged him to wade out farther; 
there were some fine ones on the outer edge of 
the patch. 

“Don’t be afraid!” Nancy heard one shrill- 
voiced girl call. “What’s the matter, Bob? Is 
the water wet? ” 

“That’s all right, Goosey!” said the boy. 
“ But you know well enough I can’t swim. And 
there’s a hole here 

“Oh!” 

The boy, lilies and all, suddenly went under! 
His half-strangled cry did not reach the ears of 
those in the automobile. And it was evident 
that they could not see the lily patch very well, 


20 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


for they were laughing and chattering without 
an idea that the boy was in danger. 

He came to the surface in a moment. Nancy 
had only sprung out upon the open path. But it 
was plain he had told the exact truth when he 
said he could not swim — and his mouth had been 
open when he went under that first time. 

The boy uttered a sobbing cry and went down 
again. Nancy knew that the water must be al- 
ready in his lungs. He was drowning — swiftly 
and surely — while the current bore him steadily 
toward the millrace. 

How could she help him? Nancy could swim 
— and swim well. Miss Prentice did not neglect 
proper outdoor athletics for her girls. She en- 
gaged a swimming instructor at one of the big 
public baths in Malden for two afternoons a week 
all through the school year. 

But the girl very well knew that she could not 
swim in the swift current of the race. She could 
not plunge in and aid the drowning boy. 

Nor was there anything that she could fling to 
him — anything that would bear him up until help 
could come. The bank was so steep and high! 
For an instant Nancy could only scream, and her 
sturdy voice drowned immediately the chatter 
and laughter of the girls in the automobile. 

She saw the chauffeur spring down the path 


THE BOY IN THE MILLRACE 21 


toward the bank of the pond and she ran to 
meet him. For a second time the boy’s head 
appeared above the surface. The hand gripping 
the great bunch of lilies beat the air; but Nancy 
saw that his eyes were wide open and that he 
seemed to have recovered his courage. 

Although he could not fight the current, he 
was trying to get his breath without swallowing 
any more water. 

“The boy’ll drown!” gasped the chauffeur, 
white-faced and helpless. 

Nancy could see the side of the automobile 
more clearly now. Lashed to the running-board 
was an extra tire, fully inflated. She seized the 
shaking man by the hand. 

“Get a knife! get a knife!” she commanded. 
“Haven’t you a knife?” 

“Ye-yes,” he gasped, fumbling in his pocket. 

“ Come on ! ” she ordered, and ran up the path 
to the road where the automobile stood. 

He came, opening the knife as he ran. The 
girls in the car were shrieking now. Nancy did 
not even look at them; it is doubtful if they saw 
her. She pointed to the tire and the chauffeur 
understood. 

He started to cut the lashings recklessly; but 
she stopped him with a cry. The stout cord was 
what she wanted. Quickly she looped it around 


22 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

the tire and he seized it and ran back to the pond’s 
edge. 

The imperiled boy was half-way through the 
race; the brown current curled about him, trying 
to bear him down. 

With a shout the chauffeur threw the tire into 
the water ahead of the boy. The latter had 
sufficient presence of mind to seize it, and the 
chauffeur dragged him toward the bank. 

But it was too steep, and the boy was too much 
exhausted to climb out without help. 

“ You’ll — you’ll have to help me! ” gasped the 
boy in the water. 

But the man could not both cling to the rope 
and lend the unfortunate victim of the accident 
a hand. Nor was there a tree or bush to which 
he might tie the rope. 

The boy had hooked one arm over the im- 
provised life-preserver. But his head had sunk 
low on his breast. He was almost completely 
exhausted, and the current, tugging at his legs, 
must soon sweep him from his insecure hold. 


CHAPTER III 


ON THE WAY TO PINEWOOD 

For half a minute Nancy Nelson had been in- 
active. Her quick mind had suggested the way 
the boy in the millrace might be saved; but the 
chauffeur of the automobile was the instrument 
by which the helpless victim’s course down the 
current had been retarded. 

But now it looked as though he would be lost, 
after all. Below the race the water was most 
boisterous — and there were many jagged rocks. 
If he was drawn through the race he would be 
seriously injured on the rocks, if not drowned. 

The bright-minded girl saw all this in those few 
seconds. She scrambled down the steep bank, 
clutching at the chauffeur’s ankle as she went. 

“ You’ll have to hold both of us for a min- 
ute I” she cried. 

“ Go ahead! I understand!” he returned, 
swaying his body back as he clung to the stout 
cord, and digging his heels into the bank. 

Nancy hung over the swift current and stretched 
her right hand down to the boy. 

23 


24 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“ Get hold ! Grab me ! ” she called, gaspingly. 

“ I — PH pull you in,” he replied, in a strangled 
tone. 

“ Do what I tell you ! ” she cried, angrily. 

She flung herself farther out just as his left arm 
was unhooked from the inflated tire. She seized 
his wrist; he had presence of mind enough to 
seize hers in return. 

“ Let go of the tire ! ” she sang out to the 
chauffeur, and he obeyed. 

He was a strong young man. As the tire went 
whirling down the stream he drew them both up 
the bank — the girl first, clinging with despera- 
tion to the wrist of the half-drowned boy. 

Wet, spattered, with mud, and exhausted, 
Nancy got a footing on firm ground once more. 
The chauffeur grabbed at the boy’s other arm, and 
he was quickly lying on the bank, too. 

“ It — it almost got me ! ” gasped the boy. 

His face was streaked with mud, and he was 
altogether a sorry spectacle. But through it all 
he had clung to the bunch of water-lilies. 

“ Here! Take ’em! ” he panted, thrusting the 
blooms into Nancy’s hand. “ You — you’re all 
right! Say! wha-what’s your name ” 

Nancy heard the other girls coming down the 
path now. The danger was over and she sud- 
denly realized that she must look a perfect fright. 


ON THE WAY TO PINEWOOD 25 

“ N-never mind! Thanks!” she blurted out, 
and turning sharply, dashed into the cover of the 
thicket and was almost instantly out of sight — out 
of sound, as well. 

But she was so excited that she did not think 
again how she looked until she appeared before 
Miss Trigg. 

The short-sighted teacher looked up at her — 
stared, evidently without identifying her charge 
for the moment — and then gave voice. 

“Nancy! Nancy Nelson! Whatever have you 
been doing to yourself?” 

“ I — I ” 

Nancy had already heard the motor get under 
way. She knew that the boy and his friends 
were now out of hearing, or reach. 

“Aren’t these lilies pretty?” she asked, hold- 
ing out the flowers as a peace-offering to Miss 
Trigg. 

“ What? ” screamed the teacher, getting up 
nimbly, and backing away from the mud-bedaubed 
figure of the girl. “ Your feet are wet! Did — 
did you dare get into such a mess just to get those 
— those weeds?” 

Nancy nodded. It was true. Her bedrabble- 
ment had been the forerunner of the gift of 
flowers from the boy. 

“Well! of all things!” gasped Miss Trigg. 


2 6 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“ I — I believe you’ve taken leave of your senses. 
Why — why, whatever will people think of you, 
going home? We — we can’t ride in the car. 
They wouldn’t let you get on. And I’d be 
ashamed to be seen with you.” 

“Oh! I’m sorry, Miss Trigg,” murmured 
Nancy. 

“ Being sorry won’t take the mud off that dress 
- — or bring a new pair of stockings — or clean 
those boots. We’ve got to have a cab — a closed 
cab. I wouldn’t go home with you in anything 
else.” 

“ I — I’ll go home alone, Miss Trigg,” said the 
contrite girl. 

“ No ! While Miss Prentice is away you shall 
never again be out of my sight in waking hours — 
no, Miss! And for a bunch of weeds! ” 

“ Oh Miss Trigg! they are so-o pretty ” 

“Don’t you say another word!” commanded 
the teacher. “ And you stand right here until I 
can signal a cab on the drive below. There, 
there’s one now ! ” 

The teacher burst through the bushes and 
waved madly to a taxi rolling slowly along the 
macadam below the hill. The driver saw her and 
stopped. 

“Come!” spoke Miss Trigg. “Here! give 
me those — those things.” 


ON THE WAY TO PINEWOOD 27 

She snatched the lilies from Nancy’s hand and 
flung them in the path. The girl looked back at 
them longingly; but she thought it best to trifle 
with the teacher no further. 

So she followed slowly the gaunt, angry woman 
down the steep path, and only the memory of the 
boy’s gift remained with her through the rest of 
the days of that last vacation at Higbee School. 

Nancy was in disgrace with Miss Trigg, and 
was very lonely. She wondered who the boy was 
— and where he lived — and who the girls were 
with him — and if he had suffered any bad result 
from his adventure. 

Above all, she wondered if she should ever see 
him again. 

But that was not likely. Miss Prentice came 
home in a week, and in another week the school 
would open. 

Mr. Gordon had sent the ticket for Nancy’s 
fare to Clintondale. Her modest trunk was 
packed. Miss Prentice bade her a perfunctory 
good-bye. It was a cold farewell, indeed, to the 
only home the girl could remember and in which 
she had lived for at least three-quarters of her 
life. 

But as the cab which was to take her to the 
railway station was about to start, Miss Trigg 
hurried out. She had scarcely recovered from 


28 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


the shock of Nancy’s adventure at the millpond; 
but after all there was a spark of human feeling 
deep down in the teacher’s heart. 

“ I — I hope you’ll do well, Nancy,” she stam- 
mered. “ Do — do keep up well in your studies and 
be a credit to us. And for mercy’s sake don’t 
venture into a pond again after nasty weeds. It’s 
not — not ladylike.” 

Nancy thought she was going to kiss her. But 
it had been a long time since Miss Trigg had 
kissed anybody, and it is doubtful if she really 
knew how. So she thought better of it, shook 
hands with Nancy in a mannish way, turned 
abruptly, and stalked back into the house. 

The taxi rolled away, and Nancy winked back 
the tears. It was not hard. After all, the or- 
phan girl was leaving nothing behind that she 
really loved . 


CHAPTER IV 


BEARDING THE LION 

Nancy Nelson’s hopes ran high. She was 
going out into a new world — the world of Pine- 
wood Hall. The girls would all be strangers to 
her there; not one of them would know her his- 
tory — or, rather, her lack of a history. 

But as to the latter, the girl was determined to 
learn all there was to know about herself before 
she arrived at Pinewood. 

In two hours the train would be in Cincinnati. 
She had but half an hour — or less — to wait for 
the train on the other road to Clintondale. But 
she had studied the time-*table and she knew that, 
by waiting four hours in Cincinnati, she could get 
another train to her destination. 

She was to telegraph back to Miss Prentice 
when she arrived at Cincinnati. At the same 
time she was supposed to telegraph ahead to the 
principal of Pinewood Hall, — Madame Schakael. 
This had all been arranged beforehand; Nancy 
had been thoroughly instructed by Miss Prentice. 

But the girl had made up her mind not to send 
29 


30 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


the dispatch on to Pinewood Hall until she was 
ready to leave Cincinnati. There should be no 
telegraphing back and forth between the two 
schoolmistresses if she could help It. 

In the interim Nancy proposed to find Mr. Gor- 
don’s office and have the long-wished-for interview 
with the man whom she called her guardian. All 
the guardians she had ever read of seemed to 
have a much deeper interest in their wards than 
this lawyer had shown in her. 

The cab driver checked her trunk and then 
spoke a word to the conductor of the train that 
would take the girl to Cincinnati. But Nancy 
felt quite independent and “ grown up.” 

She asked the conductor about stopping over at 
the big city until the later train and he assured her 
that she would need no stop-over check for that. 
She spent a good part of the time until she got to 
Cincinnati inventing speeches which she would 
make to Mr. Gordon when she reached his office. 

She filed the telegram to Miss Prentice as soon 
as she got off the train; then she checked her hand- 
bag at the parcel counter and walked out of the 
station. 

Of course, she had no idea in which direction 
South Wall Street lay; but she knew a policeman 
when she saw one, and believed those minions of 
the law to be fountains of information. 


BEARDING THE LION 


3i 


She told the officer exactly what she wanted to 
do — to go to the lawyer’s office and return to the 
station in time for the afternoon train to Clinton- 
dale. 

“ It’s quite a little walk, Miss, and you might 
get turned around. Suppose I put you into a 
taxi and take the man’s number, and he can bring 
you back, if you like?” 

Nancy had some few dollars in her pocketbook; 
but she was careful to have the policeman estimate 
the cost of her cab-ride, which he kindly did. She 
would have sufficient to pay for this, and a lunch- 
eon, as well, if she got back in season. So the girl 
bravely entered the taxi-cab and was whirled 
through the unfamiliar streets to the lawyer’s 
office. 

Then she began to quake. She was to beard 
a lion in his den — and she knew very little about 
lions ! 

Number 714 South Wall Street was a big office 
building; there were, too, taxis passing all the 
time; so Nancy paid off her chauffeur and entered 
the building with more boldness in her carriage 
than she really felt in her heart. 

She was studying the building directory when 
the hall-man came to her assistance. 

“Who are you looking for, Miss?” he asked. 

“ Mr. Henry Gordon.” 


32 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“Gordon? Is that Gordon & Craig, archi- 
tects? ” 

“ Mr. Gordon is a lawyer.” 

“ Oh ! That’s Mr. Gordon, of Ambrose, 
Necker & Boles. Twelve-forty-four. This way, 
Miss. Number 6 — going up ! ” 

She was hustled into the elevator with a crowd 
of other people and the car almost immediately 
began to ascend. 

“ Floor ! Floor ! ” the boy who manipulated 
the lever kept calling, and the passengers began 
to thin out rapidly after the fourth floor was 
passed. 

“What floor, Miss?” he snapped at her. 

“ Mr. Gordon,” stammered Nancy, more than 
a little confused by the rush of it all. “ Twelve- 
forty-four, the — the gentleman said.” 

“Twelfth! Here you. are!” and the car 
stopped with a jerk while the boy opened the 
sliding door with a flourish. 

“ Forty-four, to the right! ” advised the youth, 
and immediately the car shot up the well out of 
sight. 

The clang of the cage-door echoed through 
the empty corridor. There were rows of doors, 
with ground-glass panes, all painted in black or 
gold with the name of firms, or with the single 
word, “Private” 


BEARDING THE LION 


33 


For a minute Nancy hesitated. Somehow, her 
ears rang and she had to wink fast to keep back 
the tears. Yet it was merely nervousness. She 
knew of no reason why she should be fright- 
ened. 

Surely her guardian must wish to see her ! He 
probably was a very busy man — perhaps a man 
without a family. Maybe he lived at a hotel 
where he could not have his ward come to see 
him. That was why she had had to spend her 
vacations heretofore at Malden. Nancy thought 
of these things, and began to take courage. 

She glanced along the corridor. “ To the 
right,” the elevator boy had said. She took a 
few uncertain steps and came opposite Room 
1231. Room 1244 must be near. 

She persevered, walking almost on tiptoe so 
as not to awaken the echoes of the lofty corridor, 
and quickly came before the door numbered 1244. 
Stenciled upon it was the firm name : “ Ambrose, 
Necker & Boles, Attorneys.” 

There was nothing about Mr. Gordon. His 
name did not appear, and she was not sure now 
that she had reached the goal. 

She turned the knob with a flutter at her heart, 
and stepped into the office. She found herself 
immediately in a sort of fenced-off stall, with a 
glass partition on one hand, through which she 


34 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


saw many desks and typewriter tables, at which 
a score of men and girls were busy. 

Directly before her, however, was a gate in 
the railing and beside the gate — and evidently 
the Cerberus of the way — was a small, thin boy 
sitting at a small desk, with his legs wound around 
his chair legs like immature pythons with blue 
worsted bodies. 

He was supposed to be doing something with 
a pile of papers and long envelopes; but the truth 
was he had rigged, with rubber bands, a closely- 
printed, “ smootchy ” looking paper-backed story- 
book before him on the desk, so that on the in- 
stant Nancy approached, the rubbers snapped the 
book back under the desk lid out of sight. 

He looked up with little, red-lidded eyes, grin- 
ning queerly at her. 

“Gee!” he gasped under his breath. “I 
thought it was the boss.” Then aloud he de- 
manded, with hauteur: “ Who do you wish to see, 
lady?” 

Now Nancy had not been used to being ad- 
dressed in so cavalier a manner, and for a moment 
she did not know how to reply. But in that mo- 
ment she took a mental picture of the boy that she 
was not likely to forget. 

Besides being diminutive and fleshless, his fea- 
tures were very small and very, very sharp. The 


BEARDING THE LION 


35 


generous hand of Nature had sprinkled freckles 
across his nose. He had lost a front tooth, which 
fact made his smile perfectly “ open.” 

His watery blue eyes twinkled with mischief. 
His grin wrinkled up his preternaturally old face 
in a most remarkable way. His shock of hair 
was flame-colored — and exactly matched the tie he 
wore. 

“Say!” this youngster said. “You’ll know 
me again; eh? My name’s ‘Scorch* O’Brien. 
What’s yours?” 

“ I — I’m Nancy Nelson,” confessed the girl, 
but beginning to smile at him now. He was too 
funny for anything. “ And I’ve come to see Mr. 
Gordon.” 

“Not Old Gudgeon? He never had a lady 
come to see him before,” announced the office boy, 
explosively. “Sure it’s him you want?” 

“ Mr. Henry Gordon,” declared Nancy, in 
some doubt. 

“ Henery is his front name,” admitted Scorch, 
rumpling his red topknot. “ But I guess I’d bet- 
ter ask first if he’ll have you in.” 

“ Just tell him it’s me, please,” said Nancy, 
faintly. 

“What did you say the name was, Miss?” 

“ Nancy Nelson. He’ll know. I’m his ward.” 

“ Aw, no ! You ain’t? ” 


36 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“Yes, I am,” said Nancy, nodding. 

“ Never knowed he had one. So he is yer guar- 
deen?” grunted the red-haired boy, unwinding 
his legs. 

The girl thought she had chatted quite enough 
with this very bold youth, so made no further 
reply. 

“Ain’t he the sly one?” proceeded “ Scorch” 
O’Brien, shaking his head. “ Him a guardeen — 
an’ I never knowed it before.” 

Evidently the fact that anything of such mo- 
ment had escaped him rasped the temper of the 
boy. He went off muttering, and came back 
again, in a minute, grinning. 

“ Say! he must have robbed you of the estate. 
It sure scared him when I announced your name. 
Never seen him turn a hair before; but he wasn’t 
looking for no 4 Nancy Nelson ’ ter come up and 
confront him like this.” 

Nancy, rather offended at this “ fresh ” youth, 
swept by him through the gateway and approached 
the door to which she had seen the flame-haired 
“ Scorch ” go in his quest of Mr. Gordon. 

Yes! “Mr. Henry Gordon” was painted 
upon the door. She opened it slowly and looked 
in. 

There was a great, broad table-desk, piled high 
with books and papers — a veritable wilderness of 


BEARDING THE LION 


37 


books and papers. In a broad armchair, with 
his back to the door, sat “ Old Gudgeon,” as 
“ Scorch ” had disrespectfully called Mr. Henry 
Gordon. 

He was as broad as his chair. Indeed, he 
seemed to have been forced into it between the 
arms, by hydraulic pressure. Nancy did not see 
how he ever could get out of it! 

He had enormous shoulders, fairly “ humped ” 
with layers of fat. His head was thrust forward 
as he wrote, and his shaven neck was pink, and 
bare, and overlapped his collar in a most astonish- 
ing way. 

“Ahem!” said Nancy, clearing her throat a 
little. She had come inside and closed the door, 
and it seemed that Mr. Gordon was giving her no 
attention. 

Then she chanced to look up and, on the wall 
beyond the desk, was a broad mirror tilted so that 
the lawyer needed but to raise his eyes to see 
reflected in the glass all that went on behind him. 

And in that glass Nancy got her first glimpse 
of Henry Gordon’s face. 

It was really something more than a glimpse. 
The lawyer was evidently staring at her — had been 
doing so for some seconds. His great, broad, 
unwrinkled countenance seemed to have paled on 
her first appearance, for now the color was wash- 


38 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


ing back into it in a wave of faint pink — a ruddy- 
hue that was natural to so full-bodied a man. 

“ Come here, girl ! ” 

The voice that rumbled out of Mr. Gordon’s 
throat was commensurate with his bulk. He 
slowly turned his chair upon its pivot. Trem- 
bling, Nancy made her way across the rug to the 
corner of his desk. 

All of a sudden every bit of courage she had 
plucked up, was swept away. She felt a queer 
emptiness within her. And in her throat a 
lump had risen so big that she could not swallow. 





“what are you doing here? have you run away?” 

Page 39. 








CHAPTER V, 


nancy's curious experience 

Mr. Gordon's eyes were brown. They were 
heavy-lidded so that Nancy could see very little 
of their expression. He was a smoothly-shaven 
man and his thick lips seemed grim. 

“ You — you are the girl?” demanded the law- 
yer. 

“ Yes — yes, sir,” she said. “ I’m Nancy Nelson.” 

“ What are you doing here? Have you run 
away?” he shot at her, accentuating the query 
with a pointed forefinger. 

Afterward she realized that that impaling in- 
dex finger was a gesture of habit — it was his way 
of “ spearing ” witnesses in court when they were 
under fire. 

“ No, sir,” replied Nancy, with more confi- 
dence. 

“How do you come here, then?” 

“ I am on my way to Clintondale.” 

“ Clintondale?” 

“ Pinewood Hall, you know. There — there is 
a four-hour wait here at Cincinnati, you know.” 

39 


40 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“ I did not know,” he rumbled forth. Then, 
like a flash, he demanded: “ Who sent you here? ” 

This question took the last breath of wind out 
of Nancy’s sails. She had, through it all, be- 
lieved that he might be glad to see her. But 
now she realized that the opposite was the truth. 

“ Nobody sent me,” she stammered. 

“ Not the woman at the other school — Miss — 
Miss Prentice? ” 

“ No, sir. She does not know. I — I just 
wanted to see you.” 

“What for?” he asked, in the same sudden, 
gruff way. 

“ I — I thought you might want to see me, 
too,” she hedged. “ You — you know guardians 
usually do want to see their wards.” 

“ Ha ! who told you that I was your guar- 
dian?” 

“No — no one; but you are, sir?” she ques- 
tioned, fearfully. 

“ No, Miss. I am not.” 

“ Then — then you only act for my guardian? ” 

He looked straight at her, and steadily, for 
several moments, without speaking. Nancy could 
learn nothing from his expression. 

“ I do not know that, legally speaking or other- 
wise, you have a guardian,” he finally said. 

“ But— but ” 


NANCY’S CURIOUS EXPERIENCE 41 

“ Money passes through my hands for your 
support and schooling. That is all I can tell you. 
I am not your guardian.” 

“ Oh, but surely! ” cried the greatly perturbed 
girl, “you know something about me?” 

“ I know what your teachers have reported. 
They say you are fairly intelligent, remarkably 
healthy, and quite obedient.” 

“Oh, sir!” 

“ I consider this a flagrant case of disobedience. 
Don’t let it happen again,” pursued Mr. Gordon, 
sternly. 

“ But, sir! I cannot help it,” cried poor Nancy, 
the tears now beginning to flow. “ I feel some- 
times as though I couldn’t live unless I learned 
something about myself — who I am — who my 
folks were — why I am being educated — who is 
paying for it, and all ” 

“You would better smother your curiosity,” 
interrupted Mr. Gordon, the fat fingers of one 
hand playing a noiseless tattoo upon the edge of 
his desk. “ I can tell you nothing.” 

“ You are forbidden to tell? ” gasped the girl. 

“ I know nothing, therefore I cannot tell. You 
came to me anonymously — that is, your identity 
aside from the name you bear was unknown to 
me. The money which supports you comes to 
me anonymously.” 


42 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY. 


“ Oh ! ” The girl’s real pain and disappoint- 
ment were evident even to the case-hardened law- 
yer. He was silent while she sobbed with her 
eyes against her coat-sleeve. But no change of 
expression came into the face that, for long years, 
he had trained to hide emotion before juries and 
witnesses. 

“ I might have refused the task set me years ago 
when — when I introduced you into Miss Prentice’s 
school,” he said, at last. “ I might have gone 
to the authorities and handed you over to them — 
money and all. To what end? I was assured 
that no further money would be devoted to your 
up-keep and education. You would then have 
had no better chance than that of any foundling 
in a public charitable institution. Not so nice; 
eh?” 

“ Oh ! ” exclaimed the girl again, looking at 
him now through her tears. 

“ So I accepted the responsibility — as I ac- 
cept many responsibilities in the way of business. 
It is nothing personal to me. I am paid a certain 
sum for handling the money devoted to your sup- 
port. That is all.” 

The girl asked a strange question — strange for 
one so young, at least. The thought had stabbed 
her like a knife: 

“What would you do if I should die? How 


NANCY’S CURIOUS EXPERIENCE 43 

would you tell those — those who send the 
money? ” 

If the lawyer hesitated it was but for a moment. 
And his huge face was a veritable mask. 

“ I should advertise in the personal column of 
a certain metropolitan newspaper — that is all,” he 
declared. 

“Then — then I’m just nobody, after all?” 
sighed the girl, wiping her eyes. 

“ Why — why — I wouldn’t say that ! ” and for 
the first time a little human note came into Mr. 
Gordon’s voice, and his pink face seemed to be- 
come less grim. 

“ But that’s what I am — Miss Nobody from 
Nowhere. I had no friends at Higbee School 
because of it; I’ll have no standing at Pinewood 
Hall, either.” 

“Nonsense! nonsense!” ejaculated Mr. Gor- 
don, tapping his desk again. 

“ Girls who have homes — and folks — don’t 
want to associate with girls who come from no- 
where and don’t know anything about them- 
selves.” 

“ Well, well ! That’s a thought that had never 
entered my mind,” said the lawyer, more to him- 
self than to Nancy. 

“ You see how it is, sir. I thought there might 
be an estate, maybe. I thought maybe that, as 


44 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


so much money was being spent for me — I might 
be of some importance somewhere ” 

“ Ha ! ” exclaimed the lawyer, still staring at 
her. 

“ But now you say there’s nobody — and nothing. 
Just money comes — comes out of the air for me. 
And you pass it on. Oh, dear me ! it’s very mys- 
terious, sir.” 

He said nothing, but still looked at her. 

“ And you’re not even my guardian ! I hoped 
when I went to Pinewood and the girls began to 
get curious, I could talk about you,” confessed 
Nancy, plaintively. “ I thought maybe, if you 
even weren’t married ” 

u Ahem! I am not married,” said the lawyer, 
quickly. 

“ But, then, if you were truly my guardian, I 
might come and see you once — or you could come 
to the school and see me,” pursued the girl, wist- 
fully. “ But now — now there’s nothing — abso- 
lutely nothing.” 

“ Now there’s nothing,” repeated Mr. Gordon, 
uncompromisingly. 

“ And the girls at Pinewood Hall will be just 
like those at Higbee,” sighed Nancy. 

“ How’s that? ” demanded Mr. Gordon. 

“ They won’t want to associate with me — much. 
Their mothers won’t let them invite me home. 


NANCY’S CURIOUS EXPERIENCE 45 

For I am a nobody. I heard one lady tell Miss 
Prentice once that one never knew what might 
happen if one allowed one’s girls to associate with 
girls who had no family. Of course not. I 
couldn’t blame ’em.” 

“ Ha! ” ejaculated Mr. Gordon again. 

“ You see, my people might have been dreadful 
criminals — or something,” went on Nancy. “ It 
might all come out some day, — and then nice 
people wouldn’t want their girls to have been 
associated with me.” 

“ Ha ! ” repeated the lawyer. 

“You see how it is; don’t you?” explained 
Nancy, softly. “ Miss Prentice would not let 
the girls write home about me. And when they 
learned last June that I was going to Pinewood 
they all thought my folks must really be rich. So 
that was all right. 

“ But I thought if I could see you you would 
tell me all there was to know about myself — and 
my people; and that maybe I could talk about my 
guardian and make it all right with those new 
girls.” 

“ I’ve told you all I know,” said Mr. Gordon, 
almost sullenly, it seemed. 

“Well, then, I — I guess I’ll be going,” said 
Nancy, faintly, and turning from the desk. “ I 
— I’m sorry I bothered you, sir.” 


4 6 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


‘‘Where are you going?” demanded the law- 
yer. 

“ Why — why, to Clintondale, sir.” 

“ Ha ! I’ll make sure that you get on the right 
train, at any rate,” he said, and pressed a button 
under the edge of his desk. “ Have you had your 
luncheon ? ” 

“ No, sir. Not yet.” 

He plucked a ten-dollar note out of his vest 
pocket and thrust it into her hand. “ Get your 
luncheon.” The door opened and the red-headed 
boy looked in. “ Pay for ‘ Scorch’s ’ luncheon, 
too.” 

“ Ye-es, sir,” said Nancy, faintly. 

“ Scorch ! ” commanded Mr. Gordon. 

“ Yessir! ” snapped the office boy. 

“ It’s about your lunch hour?” 

“Yessir!” 

“ Take — take Miss Nancy Nelson to Arran- 
dale’s. Afterward take her to the station and put 
her aboard the right train for Clintondale. Un- 
derstand? ” 

“ Yessir ! ” 

Mr. Gordon wheeled back to his desk. He 
did not even say good-bye to Nancy as Scorch held 
the door open for her to pass out. 


CHAPTER VI 


THE UNRIVALED SCORCH 

“ Say! ain’t Old Gudgeon a good one? ” mur- 
mured the red-headed boy, as he followed Nancy 
to the gate. 

She did not answer. That lump had come back 
into her throat and she was industriously swallow- 
ing it. It seemed to her just then as though it 
would never be possible for her to eat luncheon 
at Arrandale’s, — wherever that might be. 

Scorch caught up his cap and hustled her out 
of the gate, and out of the main office door, and 
whistled shrilly to an elevator that was just shoot- 
ing down. 

“Come on, Nancy!” he said, with immense 
patronage. “We’ll have a swell dinner and it 
takes time to do it. When does your train get 
away? ” 

She managed to tell him. 

“Golly! we are all right, then. We can talk 
over the eats, an’ you can tell me your troubles 
and I’ll relate the story of my life to you — eh? ” 

The girl tried to smile at him, for she realized 


47 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


48 

that his chatter was kept up partly for the pur- 
pose of covering her disappointment. But Nancy 
was no baby-girl; by the time the elevator reached 
the lower floor of the building she had winked 
back her tears and the ache had gone out of her 
throat. 

“ This way, Nancy,’’ said her conductor, cheer- 
fully rushing her through the revolving door to 
the sidewalk. “ There’s Arrandale’s over yon- 
der. If I’d known I was going to eat at such a 
swell place to-day I’d have worn my glad rags — 
good duds, you know.” 

“ You — you look all right,” returned Nancy, 
smiling, for the red-headed boy did indeed have a 
neat appearance. Somebody took pains to make 
him spruce when he started for the office in the 
morning. “I guess you’ve got some folks?” 
she questioned. 

“ Sure. My mother scrubs out the offices. 
That’s how I come by my job. My big sister 
keeps house for us, an’ the kids are in school. 
Yes! there’s folks enough belonging to me. But 
my father is dead.” 

“ I — I don’t know anything about my father 
or mother — or any of my folks.” 

“No! Don’t old Gordon know?” 

“ He says not.” 

“And he’s your guardeen?” 


THE UNRIVALED SCORCH 


49 


Nancy was silent for a moment. But she was 
a perfectly honest girl and she knew she was allow- 
ing Scorch to gain a wrong impression. 

“ He — he isn’t my guardian,” she blurted out as 
they crossed the street. 

“ Hey? I thought you said he was ! ” 

“ And I thought so, then. This is the first 
time I ever saw him. He says he is not my guar- 
dian and that he doesn’t know anything about 
me. He only has money sent to him to spend for 

_ n 

me. 

“You don’t mean it?” cried Scorch, his eyes 
twinkling. “That’s like a story; ain’t it? 
You’re the mysterious heiress who doesn’t know 
who she is. That’s great!” 

“ Do you think so? ” demanded Nancy, rather 
warmly. “ Well, let me tell you it isn’t nice at 
all.” 

“Why not?” demanded the romance-loving 
youth. 

“ Why . . . The girls at school think it’s so 
odd. I’m just Miss Nobody from Nowhere. 
And they’ve all got folks.” 

“ Gee ! ” observed Scorch, getting a new idea 
of the situation. 

They reached the door of the fashionable res- 
taurant and Scorch led the way in with charac- 
teristic sang froid. He would have approached 


50 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


a king or an emperor with perfect ease. Nothing 
ever “ feazed ” him, as he was wont to boast. 

The head-waiter looked a little askance at the 
red-headed office boy; but Nancy, in her neat out- 
fit, reassured him, and he led them to a table and 
drew out the chair for the girl. 

“ Bring us a couple of time-tables so we can 
pick our eats,” ordered Scorch. 

“ Hush! ” commanded Nancy, blushing a little. 
“ Other people will hear you.” 

“ That’s what I talk for,” declared the una- 
bashed boy. 

“ Well, now you’re going to be a real nice boy 
while you’re with me; aren’t you? They might 
take you for my brother, and I wouldn’t want 
to be ashamed of your manners.” 

“ That’s a hot one ! ” observed Scorch, ad- 
miringly. “ You’re not so slow after all, Nancy.” 

“Miss Nancy, please,” corrected the girl, smil- 
ing at him. 

“ Say! but you are particular.” 

“ I believe you know how to conduct yourself 
much better than you appear,” said the girl, look- 
ing at him seriously. 

“ Discovered ! ” mocked the red-haired one, 
grinning. “ But it’s hard work to be proper.” 

“Why?” 

“ Because of my hair.” 


THE UNRIVALED SCORCH 51 

“Your hair?” 

“ Yep.” 

“ I don’t see what — what light-colored hair has 
to do with your manners,” confessed Nancy. 

“‘Light-colored’ — I like that!” exclaimed 
Scorch. “ Trying to let me down easy — eh? ” 

“ We-ell ” 

“ It’s red. Say ! nobody’s ever let me forget 
it since I could creep,” declared the boy. “ I 
useter lick all the boys I could at Number Six 
school, an’ those that I couldn’t lick I throwed 
stones at. For calling my hair out o’ name, I 
mean.” 

“ I suppose being red-headed is hard,” com- 
mented Nancy. 

“Say! bein’ an heiress without no folks ain’t 
in it with being a carrot-top,” said Scorch, grin- 
ning. 

“ Don’t you think so?” 

“ The folks in the office began getting fresh 
right away,” went on the boy, earnestly. “ Some 
of the girls that run the typewriters was as bad 
as the Willy-boys, too. They’d come up and try 
warming their hands over my head, an’ all those 
back-number jokes. 

“ So I had ter give ’em better than they sent, 
or they’d have put it all over me. Men that come 
in to see the boss, or Old Gordon, or the others, 


52 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


see my fiery top-knot, and they try to crack jokes 
on me. So I have to crack a few. 

“ So that’s why I act so fresh. Natcherly I’m 
as tame as though I wore a velvet jacket and curls; 
it’s just havin’ to defend myself, that’s made me 
what I am,” declared Scorch, shaking his head, 
mournfully, as he prepared to eat his soup with 
much gusto. 

“Oh, don’t!” begged Nancy. “Don’t make 
so much noise.” 

“That’s so! I was thinkin’ I was at Joe’s, 
where I us’lly feeds,” and the boy proceeded to 
use his spoon with a proper regard for the niceties 
of the table. 

“ There ! I knew very well you knew how,” 
said Nancy. 

“ But it hurts ! ” exclaimed Scorch, with a 
wicked grin. 

“And that is never your real name?” asked 
Nancy, after a moment. 

“‘Scorch’?” 

“ Yes. It refers to your hair, I suppose.” 

“ You’re a clairvoyant, lady,” said the boy. “ I 
gotter real, sure-’nuff name. But I forget it. My 
mother don’t even remember it any more. But 
* Scorch ’ don’t just mean my color. It’s because 
I’m some scorcher,” proceeded the boy, with 
pride. 


THE UNRIVALED SCORCH 53 

“ There weren’t any kids my size or age could 
outrun me at school — nix! and I won a medal 
when I worked for the District Telegraph Com- 
pany. I was the one fast kid that ever rushed 
flimsies.” 

“What’s that?” demanded Nancy, in wonder. 

“ Carried telegrams. But I couldn’t stop there. 
The other kids pounded the life pretty near out 
of me,” he said, with perfect seriousness. 

“ Oh ! why were they so mean? ” 

“ ’Cause I set ’em all a pace that they couldn’t 
keep up with. So they fired me out of the union, 
and then the boss fired me because I was always 
all marred up from fighting the other kids. So 
I come to work at that law shop.” 

Under advice from the knowing Scorch, Nancy 
had ordered the very nicest little luncheon she 
had ever eaten. And the boy gave evidence of 
enjoying it even more than she did. 

Indeed, her appetite was soon satisfied; but 
Scorch kept her answering questions about her- 
self; and soon she found that she was being quite 
as confidential with this red-headed office boy as 
she ever had been with anybody in her life. 

“ Say! did it ever strike you that Old Gordon 
might be stringing you?” demanded Scorch. 

His slang puzzled the girl not a little; but the 
red-headed one explained: 


54 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“ Suppose he did know all about you and your 
folks — only he didn’t want to tell?” 

“But why?” 

“Oh, ain’t you green?” demanded Scorch. 
“ Don’t you see he might be making money out 
of you? Mebbe there’s a pile of money, and he’s 
using only a little for you and putting the rest of 
it in his pocket? ” 

“ Oh, I don’t believe Mr. Gordon would do 
such an awful thing,” gasped Nancy, shaking her 
head vigorously. 

“ Well, they do it to heiresses in stories,” re- 
turned Scorch, doggedly. “ And worse.” 

“ But I don’t believe It.” 

“ That’s all right — that’s all right,” said the 
boy. “ You’re not supposed to believe it. You’re 
the heroine; they never believe anything but what’s 
all nice and proper,” urged Scorch. “ You 
lemme alone. I’m goin’ to watch Gordon. If 
he’s up to something foxy, I’ll find it out. Then 
I’ll write to you. Say! where’s this jail they’re 
goin’ to put you in?” 

“ It’s no jail,” laughed Nancy, immensely 
amused, after all, by this romantic and slangy 
youth. “ It’s a beautiful school. It’s Pinewood 
Hall. It’s at Clintondale, on Clinton River. And 
it’s very select.” 

“It’s what?” 


THE UNRIVALED SCORCH 55 

“ Select. It costs a lot of money to go there. 
The girls are very nice.” 

“All right. You can get a letter, just the 
same; can’t you? ” 

“ Why — I suppose so. I — I never did receive 
a letter — not one.” 

“ All right. You’ll get one from me,” prom- 
ised Scorch, with assurance. “ If I find out any- 
thing about Old Gordon that looks like we was 
on his trail, I’ll let you know.” 

“That’s very nice of you,” replied Nancy, de- 
murely, but quite amused. “ Now, have you fin- 
ished, Scorch?” 

“ Full up,” declared the youngster. “ The 
gangplank’s ashore and we’re ready to sail — if we 
ain’t overloaded,” and he got up from his chair 
with apparent difficulty. 

Nancy had paid the bill and tipped the waiter. 
She had a good bit of the ten dollars left to slip 
back in her pocketbook; but she reserved a crisp 
dollar-bill where it would be handy. 

They had plenty of time to walk to the station, 
and Nancy was glad to do this. Besides, Scorch 
declared he needed the exercise. 

The red-headed boy was a mixture of good- 
heartedness and mischievousness that both de- 
lighted Nancy and horrified her. He was saucy 
to policemen, truckmen, and anybody who under- 


56 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

took to treat him carelessly on the street. But 
he aided his charge very carefully over all the 
crossings, and once ran back into the middle of 
the street and held up traffic to pick up an old 
woman’s parcel. 

They came to the station, got Nancy’s bag, and 
Scorch insisted upon taking her to the very step 
of the car. When she shook hands with him 
Nancy had the bank-note ready and she left it in 
his hand. 

Before she got up the steps, however, he ran 
back, pushed aside the brakeman, and reached 
her. 

“ Say ! you can’t do that,” he gasped, his face 
as red as his hair. 

“ Do what?” demanded the girl. 

“ You can’t tip me. Say! I ain’t the waiter — 
nor the janitor of the flat. I’m the hero — and 
the heroine never tips the hero — nix on that! ” 

The next moment he had thrust the dollar-bill 
into her hand, jumped down to the platform, and 
scuttled through the crowd, leaving Nancy with 
the feeling that she had offended a friend. 


CHAPTER VII 


FIRST IMPRESSIONS 

When the train pulled out of the station Nancy 
Nelson noticed for the first time that the sky had 
become overcast and the clouds threatened rain. 
Scorch O’Brien, the odd new friend she had made, 
was so sprightly a soul that she really had not 
observed the change in the weather. 

“ Oh ! I’d like to have a brother like him,” 
she thought. “ I don’t care if he is slangy — and 
fresh. I guess he wouldn’t be so if — as he says 
— everybody didn’t try to poke fun at his red 
hair. And how homely he is ! ” 

She smiled happily over some of Scorch’s 
sayings and his impish doings; so they were some 
miles on the journey before she began to look 
about the car. 

Her ticket had called for a chair in the parlor- 
car; and she immediately discovered that she was 
not the only girl who seemed to be traveling alone. 

At least there were half a dozen girls not far 
from her own age who were chattering together 
some distance forward of her seat. When the 


57 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


58 

conductor came along he smiled down upon Nancy 
and asked, as he punched her ticket: 

“ You going to Pinewood, too?” 

“ Yes, sir.” 

“Your first term there?” 

“ Oh, yes, sir.” 

“ Then you don’t know these other girls? ” and 
he nodded to the group further up the car. 

“ No, sir. Are they going there, too? ” asked 
Nancy, eagerly. 

“ Yes. I’ve been carrying a lot of them to 
Clintondale this week. The Hall opens day after 
to-morrow. Anybody to meet you, Miss? ” 

“ I telegraphed on from Cincinnati,” said 
Nancy. 

“ That’s all right, then. One of the ’bus men 
will be on the lookout for you.” 

“But are those all new girls, too?” asked 
Nancy, earnestly, as the conductor was about to 
pass on. 

“ No. But most of them have been there only 
one term. That tall girl is named Montgomery. 
Her father’s a State Senator — guess you’ve heard 
£>f Senator Montgomery? Go up and speak to 
them,” and the conductor passed on. 

But Nancy did not have the courage to take 
his advice. She, however, observed the girls with 
renewed interest. 


FIRST IMPRESSIONS 


59 


The tall one — the Montgomery girl — was very 
richly dressed, and she seemed to think a good 
deal of what she wore. She was always arrang- 
ing her gown, and looking in the glass to see if 
her hat was on straight — and occasionally Nancy 
caught her powdering her nose. 

There was a black-haired girl, too, with very 
sharp eyes and a lean face, who laughed whenever 
the Montgomery girl said anything supposed to 
be funny, and seemed to ape the Senator’s daughter 
in other ways, too. The other girls called her 
“ Cora.” 

Once Nancy went forward to get a drink of 
water. She passed the group of her future school- 
mates slowly, hoping that some of them would 
speak to her. But none did, and when she came 
back down the aisle, the tall girl eyed her with 
disdain. 

Nancy flushed and hurried by; but not too 
quickly to hear the Montgomery girl say: 

“ Trying to butt in, I guess.” 

The girl called Cora laughed shrilly. 

“I guess I’m not going to like those girls,” 
sighed Nancy. And then she shivered as she 
thought of how mean they might be if they ever 
found out that she was “ Miss Nobody from No- 
where.” 

The rain began to slant across the open fields 


6o 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


and trace a pattern upon the broad, thick, glass 
beside her so that she could no longer see out. 
Besides, it was growing dark early. 

The train passed through towns that seemed 
all gloomy, smoky brick buildings, or shanties 
clinging like goats to the sides of high bluffs. A 
pall of dun vapor hung over these towns, and 
the lonely Nancy was glad when the train did not 
stop. 

Sometimes they dashed into a tunnel, and a 
cloud of stifling smoke wrapped the cars about 
and the cinders rattled against the ventilators 
and roof. 

On and on swept the train, and at last the brake- 
man, as they left one station, announced: 

“Next stop Clintondale ! ” 

Nancy began to gather her things together and 
put on her coat long before the train slowed down. 
Then the other girls got ready leisurely, still chat- 
ting. 

The rain beat harder against the window. It 
was after seven o’clock. They passed a block- 
tower with its lights and semaphore. Then the 
grinding brakes warned her that her destination 
was at hand. 

The end of the wet platform flashed into view. 
There were dazzling lights, rumbling hand-trucks, 
and people running about. 


FIRST IMPRESSIONS 


6 1 


As she came to the door of the car — she did 
not go out by the one chosen by the Senator’s 
daughter and her friends — the roar of voices burst 
upon her ear: 

“Clinton Hotel! This way!” 

“ Pinewood Hall ! This is the ’bus for the 
school! Pinewood Hall ! ” 

“ Carriage, Miss ! Private carriage, Miss ! ” 

“ Pinewood Hall ! Pinewood Hall ! ” 

“ Clinton House ! Come on, here, you that 
want the hotel.” 

“ ’Bus for Pinewood. That you, Miss Briggs? 
Going with me? Where’s yer check? ” 

“ This way for the school. Pinewood Hall ! 
Hi, there, Jim! Found that other one? Miss 
Nelson! Miss Nelson! Who’s seen Miss 
Nelson?” 

Suddenly Nancy realized that the big man in 
front of her was roaring her name in stentorian 
tones. 

“Oh, oh!” she gasped. il Vm Miss Nelson.” 

“All right. Here she is, Jim! Right this 
way to the ’bus. Where’s your check, Miss? All 
right. Have the trunk and bag up some time 
to-night — if they are here.” 

“ They should have come on the earlier train,” 
explained Nancy. 

“ All right. Then you’ll git ’em on this load. 


6 2 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


There’s the ’bus, Miss. Yes! there’s room for 
you in there.” 

The omnibus was backed up against the plat- 
form under the hood of the station. There was 
a crowd of laughing, chattering girls before her 
in the vehicle. 

“ Now, Jim ! you can’t put another livin’ soul 
in this ’bus — you know you can’t,” cried one, to 
the driver. 

“ Boss says so, Miss,” growled Jim. 

“ What do you think we are — sardines? Oh! 
my foot! ” shrieked another girl. 

“And she’s a greeny, too. Any of you ever 
see her before? ” demanded one of the girls near- 
est the half-closed door. 

“ Say! what’s your name? ” asked another girl, 
leaning out to speak to Nancy. 

Nancy told her. 

“She’s green — what did I tell you? And 
we’re all sophs here. Say, Freshie! don’t you 
know you don’t belong in here?” 

)> “ She’ll have to ride with you, Jim, on the front 

seat.” 

“Now! you know what the Madame would 
say to that , Miss,” growled Jim. 

“ Here! ” interposed Nancy herself. “ I don’t 
want to ride with you any more than you seem to 
want me. But it’s raining, and I don’t propose 


FIRST IMPRESSIONS 


63 

to get wet,” and she sturdily shouldered her way 
past the driver and into the ’bus between the 
knees of the girls on either hand. 

“ I can stand,” she said, grimly. 

“ But don’t stand on my foot, please, Miss I ” 
snapped a girl she was crowding. “ Haven’t you 
any feet of your own? ” 

“ Oh, cracky, Bertha ! you know she’s got to 

stand somewhere. And your feet ” 

“Ouch! who are you shoving?” 

“ Step forward, please ! ” 

“ Plenty of room up front! ” 

“ Why, Belle Macdonald’s piled her bags up 
in the corner and has gone to sleep on ’em!” 
shrieked somebody from ahead, as the ’bus 
lurched forward. 

Nancy was confused, hurt, and ashamed. The 
horse splashed through the puddles and the ’bus 
plunged and shook over the cobbles. 

There were few street lights, and such as there 
were were dim and wavering in the mist and 
falling rain. She could see nothing of Clintondale, 
except that huge trees lined the streets. 

The girls were cross, or loud. Not one spoke 
to her kindly. She was shaken about by the ’bus, 
and scolded by those whom she was forced to 
trample upon when she lost her footing. 

The new girl from Higbee was much depressed. 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


64 

All her pride and satisfaction in being sent to 
such a popular school as Pinewood had oozed 
away. 

Her experience with Mr. Gordon added to her 
unhappiness. She had learned nothing by going 
to him. He had even called her disobedient. 

If these girls were a sample of Pinewood Hall 
pupils, Nancy knew that she had a hard row to 
hoe ahead of her. And she had not liked the ap- 
pearance of those other girls in the train, either. 

It was a hopeless outlook. She would have 
cried — only she was ashamed to do so in the sight 
of these sharp-tongued, quarreling sophomores. 
Poor Nancy Nelson’s introduction to Pinewood 
Hall seemed a most unfortunate one. 


CHAPTER VIII 


THE MADAME 

The omnibus lurched through a wide gateway 
where two huge stone pillars almost hid a tiny 
lodge, the latter aglow with lamplight. Pinewood 
had once been a famous private estate, and a Vice- 
president of the United States had lived in it. 

But for many years it had been a girls’ school, 
and Madame Schakael had come from Germany 
to be its principal. As a little girl she had at- 
tended the school herself, Nancy knew, and she 
had afterward — after being an instructor in col- 
lege — married a German professor and gone to 
his country. 

He was now dead and Madame had come back 
to her native land and to her much beloved prepa- 
ratory school. 

The door of the lodge opened and Nancy saw 
a very neat looking woman with a dark dress and 
gingham apron standing in the doorway. She 
waved a hand and her cheerful voice reached the 
ears of the wrangling girls in the ’bus. 

65 


66 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“Welcome, young ladies! Are you all right? 
Are there any new ones there? ” 

“ We’re all sophs but one greeny,” called one 
of the girls. “ Glad to see you, Jessie Pease.” 

“ Thank you, Miss. The new one is to go to 
the Madame at once. That is the order. Let 
her go before supper.” 

The driver snapped his whip and the ’bus rum- 
bled on. The drive was winding and the trees 
soon hid the lighted lodge. 

But other bright lamps began to appear ahead. 
By stooping, as she clung to one of the hand- 
straps, Nancy was able to descry the outlines of 
several big buildings — or a huge building with 
several wings; she did not know which it was, and 
did not feel like inquiring. 

Indeed, after entering the ’bus she had not 
spoken to the girls at all. Some of them had 
thrown a question at her now and then, but it had 
been either an impudent or an unkind one, and she 
had grimly held her tongue. 

At last the ’bus stopped at the foot of a wide 
flight of steps. A great awning of glass and iron 
sheltered the porch and steps. Under this burned 
a bright light, and within the building Nancy 
could see a great hall with two staircases rising 
out of it. 

This was indeed a very different place from 


THE MADAME 67 

Higbee School, with its cottages and one small 
recitation hall. 

“ Come on! You get out first, Greeny,” com- 
manded one girl. “ You were the last sardine 
shoved into this awful box. Move; can’t 
you? ” 

Nancy rescued her bag from under their feet 
and staggered out of the door of the ’bus. The 
other girls piled after her. 

There were very few on the porch to receive 
them; boisterousness would not have been allowed 
here. But there were lights in a long room at one 
side — Nancy could see them shining through the 
windows — and a rattle of china and glass, and 
loud talking and laughter, pointed the way to 
the dining room. 

“ But you’re on starvation diet, Greeny,” said 
one of the girls, with a malicious laugh. “ No 
dinner for you till you’ve seen the Madame.” 

At that moment considerable disturbance was 
raised over the fact that the ’bus was driving off 
with one of the girls still in it. 

“Let Belle Macdonald out! I told you she 
was asleep in there,” cried one of the sophs, Tun- 
ing after the driver through the puddles. 

He pulled up and they managed to rouse Miss 
Macdonald, who was a fat girl with innumerable 
bags and parcels. She staggered out of the ’bus, 


68 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

dropping sundry of her impedimenta, sleepy and 
yawning. 

“ I don’t care, girls. I was up all last night at 
a party at home, and I haven’t slept much for a 
week,” she said, heavily. “ Come on, Judy. You 
bring part of my things; will you? ” 

“ Come on in to dinner,” said the girl who 
helped the sleepy one. 

“ Believe me! I’d be asleep in a minute. I’m 
going to tumble into bed. Anybody know if 
Judy and I have got the same old hole-in-the-wall 
to sleep in? ” 

“ Go up and grab it, anyhow,” advised her 
chum. “ I’ll bring the rest of these things when 
I come. And don’t fall down in one of the corri- 
dors and go fast asleep, Belle, for I’ll never be 
able to drag you off to bed.” 

They trooped away, leaving Nancy and her 
bag practically alone on the porch. Nancy had 
never realized that girls could be so hateful. 

But she forgot that these were all sophomores, 
and the second-year girls and freshmen at Pine- 
wood Hall were as far apart as the poles. 

The new girl went timidly into the hall. The 
chime of distant laughter still came from the room 
where the new arrivals were eating their evening 
meal, evidently under little discipline on this first 
night. 


THE MADAME 


6 9 

There seemed to be no real “ greeny ” but her- 
self about. She saw several girls pass and re- 
pass at the far end of the hall, and others mounted 
the staircases; but at first nobody spoke to Nancy. 

She was not naturally a timid girl; but all this 
was strange to her. She faced a row of closed 
doors upon the side of the corridor opposite the 
dining place. One of these might be the door 
of the principal’s office ; but which one Nancy could 
not guess. 

For five minutes she waited. Then suddenly 
she was aware of a tall and very dark girl coming 
down one of the great staircases. 

This newcomer must have been eighteen or nine- 
teen — a “ big girl ” indeed in Nancy’s eyes. And 
such a pretty girl! The “ greeny ” had never in 
her life seen so pretty a girl before. 

She was dark, her eyes were black, her hair was 
banded about her head, and her lips were so red 
that they might have been painted. But her color 
was natural — cheeks as well as lips. A flashing, 
cheerful countenance she turned on Nancy, and 
she said, before she reached the foot of the stairs: 

“ You’re a new girl, I am sure. Hasn’t any- 
body spoken to you? Where do you want to 
go?” 

The mere tone of this girl’s voice seemed to 
change the atmosphere that had so depressed 


70 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


Nancy. That lump was in her throat again, but 
she could smile at the serene beauty. 

“ I was told to see Madame Schakael — before 
having dinner. But I don’t know where to find 
her,” confessed Nancy. 

“ Oh, that’s easy,” cried the other girl. “ I’ll 
show you. What is your name, please?” 

Nancy told her. 

“ I am Corinne Pevay,” said the other, pro- 
nouncing her name in the French manner. “ I 
am a senior. I hope you will be happy here, 
Nancy Nelson.” 

“ Thank you ! ” gasped the younger girl, having 
hard work now to keep from crying. The kind 
word moved her more than the neglect of the 
other girls. 

Corinne led the way to one of the doors and 
opened it composedly. Through a richly fur- 
nished ante-room she preceded the new girl and 
knocked lightly upon another doer. 

“ Enter! ” responded a pleasant voice. 

Corinne turned the knob, looked in, said 
“ Good-evening! ” brightly, and then stood aside 
for Nancy to pass her. 

“Another newcomer, Madame — Nancy Nel- 
son.” 

“ Come in, too, Corinne,” said the pleasant 
roice. 


THE MADAME 


7i 


Nancy passed through and saw the owner of 
the voice. She was a little lady — a veritable doll- 
like person. She sat on a high chair at a desk- 
table, with her tiny feet upon a hassock, for they 
could not reach the floor. 

“ Come hither, Nancy Nelson. You are the 
girl of whom my good friend, Miss Prentice, of the 
Higbee School, wrote me ? Iam glad to see you, 
child,” declared Madame Schakael. 

Her hair was a silvery gray, but there was a 
lot of it, and her complexion was as rosy as 
Nancy’s own. She must have passed the half- 
century mark some time before, but the principal 
of Pinewood Hall betrayed few marks of the 
years in her face. 

She had shrewd gray eyes, however, and 
rather heavy brows. Nancy thought at once that 
no girl would undertake to take advantage of 
Madame Schakael, despite her diminutive size. 
Those eyes could see right through shams, and her 
lips were firm. 

She took Nancy’s hand and drew the girl 
around to her side. There she studied the new- 
comer’s face earnestly, and in silence. 

“ We have here one of the sensitive ones, Co- 
rinne,” she said, at last, speaking to the senior 
instead of to Nancy. “ But she is ‘ true blue.’ She 
will make a fine Pinewood girl — yes, yes! 


72 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“We will try to make her happy here — though 
she does not look entirely happy now,” and Ma- 
dame laughed in a quick, low way that pleased 
the new girl vastly. 

“Ah! there she smiles. Nancy Nelson, you 
look much prettier when you smile — cultivate smil- 
ing, therefore. That must be your first lesson 
here at Pinewood Hall. 

“ Happiness is born of making other people 
happy. See if you can’t do someone a good turn 
every day. You’ll get along splendidly that way, 
Nancy. 

“ Now, as for the lessons — you stood well in 
your classes at Higbee. You will find it no 
harder to stand well here, I am sure. I shall ex- 
pect to hear good reports of you. Classes begin 
day after to-morrow. 

“ Meanwhile, make yourself at home about the 
Hall; learn your way about; get acquainted — es- 
pecially with the members of your own class. I 
shall put Nancy Nelson on your side of the Hall, 
Corinne — the West Side.” 

“ Then I’ll take her right up and show her the 
room. What is it to be, Madame?” asked Co- 
rinne, cheerfully. 

The principal ran through several pages of a 
ledger before replying. 

“ Number 30, West.” 


THE MADAME 


73 

“ She’s chummed with Miss Rathmore, then,” 
said the older girl, quickly. 

“Yes. I must break up that clique. Put her 
with Miss Rathmore. And do see that the child 
has some dinner; she must be hungry,” said the 
Madame, laughing again. 

Then she once more shook Nancy’s hand. 

“ Go with Corinne, dear. If you want to know 
anything, ask her. Read the rules of the Hall, 
which you will find framed in your room. If you 
obey them cheerfully, you can’t go far wrong. 
Good-night, Nancy Nelson! and I hope you will 
sleep well your first night at Pinewood Hall.” 


CHAPTER IX 


CORA RATHMORE 

Nancy followed the senior out of the princi- 
pal’s presence, feeling much encouraged. Madame 
Schakael was so different from Miss Prentice, the 
principal of the school at which Nancy had lived 
so many years. 

“ Isn’t she just the sweetest woman you ever 
met?” demanded Corinne, enthusiastically. 

“ She is lovely,” responded Nancy. 

“ But she is firm. Don’t try to take any ad- 
vantage of her,” laughed the senior. “ You will 
find that she is only doll-like in appearance. She 
is a very scholarly woman, and she believes 
strongly in discipline. But she gets effects without 
dealing out much punishment. You’ll learn.” 

“ I hope I won’t need to learn her stern side,” 
said Nancy, smiling. 

“ Well, you seem a sensible kid,” said the older 
girl, patting her on the shoulder. “ Come on, 
now, and have your dinner. Then I’ll take you 
up into our side of the hall.” 

74 


CORA RATHMORE 


75 

“ I hope I am not taking up your time too much, 
Miss — Miss Pevay,” said Nancy. 

“ Not at all,” laughed the senior. “ What is 
the good of being boss of a ‘ side ’ if one has no 
responsibilities? It’s an honor to be captain of 
the West Side of Pinewood Hall.” 

“ Oh! it must be,” agreed Nancy, who thought 
this beautiful girl a very great person indeed. 

They came to the long room in which the tables 
were set. There were only a few girls in the 
room. Nancy at once saw the Montgomery girl 
and her friends at one table, but was glad that 
Miss Pevay did not approach them. 

Indeed, Corinne took her to one of the senior 
tables where two or three of the older pupils of 
Pinewood were grouped. 

“ Here’s a little ‘ greeny ’ who has come among 
us hungry,” laughed the senior, urging Nancy into 
a chair and beckoning to one of the waitresses. 

The other big girls were kind to the newcomer; 
but they had interests of their own and what they 
chatted about was all “ Greek ” to Nancy Nelson. 
So she gave her strict attention to the food. 

The dinner was nicely served and was much 
better than the food usually put on the table at 
Higbee School. By this time Nancy was hungry, 
and she did full justice to the repast. Meanwhile 
an occasional brisk fire of conversation between 


7 6 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Corinne and her friends penetrated to Nancy’s 
rather confused understanding. 

“ Are all the nice boys back at Clinton Academy 
this half, do you know, Corinne?” 

“ Don’t ask me! I can’t keep run of all Dr. 
Dudley’s boys,” laughed Miss Pevay. 

“ Well, I hope Bob Endress has come. He’s 
certainly one nice boy,” cried another of the 
seniors. 

“Why! he’s only a child!” drawled another 
young lady. “ If he is back this fall it is only to 
begin his junior year.” 

“ I don’t care,” said Corinne. “ He really is 
a nice boy. I agree with Mary.” 

“ Say ! the Montgomery girl told me Bob came 
near being drowned this summer. What do you 
know about that? ” 

“Oh, Carrie!” 

“ She had all the details, so I guess it’s so. 
He is some sort of a distant relative of hers ” 

“ I’d want the relationship to be mighty dis- 
tant if I were Bob,” laughed the girl named 
Mary. 

“ Quite so,” said the teller of the tale. “ How- 
ever, he went automobiling with the Montgom- 
erys through to Chicago. And on the road he fell 
into some pond, or river, and he can’t swim ” 

“ But he can skate — beautifully,” sighed Co- 


CORA RATHMORE 


77 

rinne. “ I hope there’ll be good skating this 
winter on Clinton River.” 

“ Me, too ! And me ! Oh, I adore skating ! ” 
were the chorused exclamations from the group. 

Corinne now noted that Nancy had finished. 

44 Come ! I’ve got to stow little 4 greeny ’ away 
for the night,” she said, pinching Nancy’s plump 
cheek. 44 Come on, kid! It’ll soon be bedtime 
for first-readers.” 

Nancy did not mind this playful reference to her 
juvenile state, it was said so pleasantly. She fol- 
lowed Corinne docilely up the broad flight into 
the west wing of the great building. Once it 
had been a private residence; but it was big enough 
to be called a castle. 

The rooms on the lower floor had not been 
much changed when Pinewood Hall became a pre- 
paratory school for girls. But above the first 
story the old partitions had been ripped out and 
the floors cut up on each side of the main stair- 
ways into a single broad, T-shaped corridor and 
many reasonably spacious bedrooms and studies. 

One walked out of the corridor into the studies; 
the bedrooms were back of these dens, with broad 
windows, overlooking the beautiful grounds. 

On the first dormitory floor were the instruct- 
ors’ rooms, for the most part. One lady teacher 
only slept on the second floor; above, the seniors 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


78 

and juniors governed their own dormitories. By 
the time the girls came to their last two years at 
Pinewood Hall, Madame Schakael believed that 
they should be governed by honor solely. 

The freshies were paired on the first dormitory 
floor — two girls in each apartment. Number 30, 
Nancy found, was upon one of the “ arms ” of 
the corridor, and a good way from any of the 
teachers’ studies, and from the main stairway. 

When Corinne and Nancy came to Number 30 
there was nobody in the study or bedroom. The 
older girl snapped on the electric lights by pushing 
a button in the wall beside the entrance door. 

“ Rathmore is your chum,” said Corinne, 
lightly. “ I hope you two girls will get on well 
together. I like to have all the chums live to- 
gether without friction — for it is easier for me, 
and easier for the teachers. 

“ Now, Cora Rathmore has been here half a 
term already. Some of your class came in last 
spring so as to take up certain studies to fit them 
for the beginning of the fall work. I presume, 
from what Madame Schakael says, that your 
school was a pretty good one, and that you were 
brought along farther in your primary and gram- 
mar studies than some of the others. 

“ However, Rathmore knows her way about. 
She — she’s not a bad sort; but she and some of 


CORA RATHMORE 


79 

her friends last spring made the former West 
Side captain considerable trouble. 

“ So those girls who were bothersome,” pur- 
sued Corinne, “ can’t room together again this 
half. There! that is your side of the room. 
That’s your bed, and your cupboard and locker, 
and your dressing table. Keep everything neat, 
Nancy. That’s the first commandment at Pine- 
wood Hall. And the other commandments you 
can read on that framed list,” and she pointed to 
a brief schedule of rules and duties hanging on 
the wall of the study. 

Then the senior put her arm around the new 
girl and gave her a resounding kiss upon her plump 
cheek. 

“ You’re a nice little thing, I believe. Good- 
night! ” she said, and ran out of the room. 

But she left Nancy Nelson feeling almost as 
though she had deliberately deceived the senior. 
Would Corinne Pevay have been so friendly — and 
kissed her — if she had been aware that Nancy was 
just “ Miss Nobody from Nowhere? ” 

After a little, however, the new girl opened her 
handbag and took out her toilet articles and her 
nightgown, robe, and slippers. She arranged the 
brushes and other things on the dressing table, 
and hung her robe and gown in their proper place. 

It was now nearly nine o’clock. She under- 


So 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


stood that, during term time, at least, the fresh- 
man class were to be in bed at nine; and even the 
seniors must have their lights out at ten o’clock. 

She read the list of rules through carefully. 
They did not seem hard, or arbitrary. Miss 
Prentice had been strict, indeed. To Nancy these 
“ commandments ” seemed easily kept. 

There were two small desks in the room. 
Nancy examined the one upon her own side of the 
study and found only stationery, blank books, 
pencils, and pen and ink. There were no books. 

But she ventured to look in the other desk, 
which was not locked, and saw that here were 
several text-books, evidently to be studied by the 
freshmen this first year. 

In each book was written the name of Cora 
Rathmore. It was an erect, angular handwriting, 
and somehow Nancy drew from it that she would 
not like the owner of the books. 

And yet she wanted to like her. Nancy longed 
for a real chum. She wished that her suspicions 
might prove to be unfounded, and that her room- 
mate might be a jolly, open-hearted girl who 
would like her, and 

“Well! perhaps you don’t know that that is 
my desk?” snapped a voice suddenly, behind her. 

Nancy dropped the book, startled. She 
wheeled to see confronting her, just within the 


CORA RATHMORE 


81 


room, the black-eyed, thin-faced girl who had 
seemed on the train to be Grace Montgomery’s 
chief friend. 

“Well! haven’t you got anything to say?” 
demanded the sharp-voiced girl. 

“ Why, I wondered what our books were going 
to be like ” 

“ Now you know. Keep out of my desk here- 
after,” interposed the other girl. u And please 
to inform me what you’re doing in here, any- 
way? ” 

“ Why, I — I have been chummed with you — 
if you are Cora Rathmore,” said Nancy. 

“You?” shrieked the other. “No! it’s not 
so! I won’t have it! I was just going to get 
my books and go to Grace’s room ” 

“ Oh, I know nothing about that” said Nancy, 
hastily. “ I only know that Miss Pevay brought 
me to this room and said I must chum with the 
girl who was here.” 

“It’s not so! I don’t believe you!” cried 
Cora. “ And that stuck-up thing, — that French- 
Canadian smartie I— just did it to be mean. I’m 
going to Madame ” 

Nancy really hoped she would. She hoped 
with all her heart that it would prove a mistake 
that Cora Rathmore was chummed with her. She 
knew very well now that her suspicions had justi- 


82 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


lication in fact. This girl was a most unpleasant 
roommate. 

At that moment the door banged open and 
another girl came flying in. 

“Oh, Cora! have you found out? We can’t 
do it?” 

“Found out what?” snapped Cora. 

“ We can’t pick our rooms as we did last spring. 
Grace has been sent clear over into the other 

corridor, and is paired with a greeny Say, 

who’s this?” 

“ Oh, I don’t know ! ” said Cora, sullenly sit- 
ting down. “ It’s just too mean ! I’ve got to 
stop here, I suppose.” 

“ And they’ve taken Belle from me and given 
me Annie Gibbons,” cried the visitor. “ And 
Annie snores — horridly ! ” 

“ It’s a hateful place,” snarled Cora Rathmore. 

“ I wish my folks hadn’t sent me here,” groaned 
the other. 

“ I’d run away — for half a cent,” declared the 
Rathmore girl. 

“Where would you run to?” demanded her 
friend. 

“ Anywhere. To the city. I don’t care. 
Pinewood Hall isn’t going to be any fun at all, if 
we can’t pair off as we choose.” 

“Who’s your chum?” asked the visitor again, 


CORA RATHMORE 83 

eyeing Nancy, who had returned to her own side 
of the room and had turned her back to them. 
u Oh, I don’t know. Some nobody, of course ! ” 
The words cut Nancy to the heart. The very 
phrase, uttered by chance, was the one she had 
feared most in coming to Pinewood Hall. 

“ Oh,” thought she, “ if they say that of me 
already, what will they say when they find that 
I really have no home and no folks? ” 


CHAPTER X 


“ WHO IS SHE, ANYWAY? ” 

The curfew bell sent the younger girls to their 
rooms a few moments later; but Cora Rathmore 
went to bed without speaking to her roommate. 
And Nancy felt too unhappy herself to try to 
overcome the other girl’s reticence. 

The girl from Higbee School had had so many 
adventures that day that she could not at once 
go to sleep. She lay awake a long time after 
Cora’s heavy and regular breathing assured her 
that her companion in Number 3 was in the land 
of dreams. 

She heard the gong at ten which demanded 
silence and “ lights out ” of the girls on the upper 
dormitory floors. Then a list-slippered teacher 
went through the corridor. After that she went 
to sleep. 

But her own dreams were not very restful. 
She was hiding something all night long from 
some creature that had a hundred eyes ! 

In the morning, when she awoke, she knew that 
what she had been trying to hide — what she must 
84 


“WHO IS SHE, ANYWAY?” 85 

hide, indeed — was the knowledge that she was 
“ Miss Nobody ” from all these eager, inquisi- 
tive, perhaps heartless girls. 

Nancy had been in the habit of rising early, 
and she was up and dressed before rising bell at 
seven. When Cora rolled over sleepily and 
blinked about the sun-flooded room, she saw 
Nancy tying her hair-ribbon, being otherwise 
completely dressed, and she whined : 

“Well! I sha’n’t like you, Miss. I can see 
that, plainly. You don’t know enough to lie abed 
and let a fellow sleep.” 

“ I am sure / did not wake you,” replied Nancy, 
composedly. “ It was the gong.” 

“ Bah! ” grumbled Cora, crawling out of bed. 

Nancy had read over the rules again and she 
knew that from rising bell until breakfast at half- 
past seven she was free to do as she chose. So, 
not caring to listen to her roommate’s ill-natured 
remarks, she slipped out and found her way 
downstairs and out of the building. 

It was a clear, warm September morning. The 
leaves on the distant maples had only just begun 
to turn. The lawns before Pinewood Hall were 
beautiful. Behind and on both sides of the great 
main building was the grove of huge pine trees 
that gave the place its name. 

Beautifully smooth, pebbled paths led through 


86 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


this grove in several directions. Nancy chanced 
upon one that led to the gymnasium and swimming 
pool. There were tennis and basket-ball courts, 
and other means of athletic enjoyment. 

Down the easy slope, from the top of the knoll 
where the gym. stood, flowed the wide, quiet Clin- 
ton River, with a pennant snapping in the morn- 
ing breeze on the staff a-top the school boathouse. 

“ Oh, this is the most beautiful place ! ” thought 
Nancy. “ What a perfectly lovely time I should 
have here if only the girls liked me. I must make 
them like me. That’s what I’ve got to do.” 

She saw only two or three other girls about the 
grounds, and those at a distance. As she ran 
back to the main building, however, that structure 
began to hum with life. More than anything else 
did Pinewood Hall remind Nancy of a great bee- 
hive. 

Many of the bedroom windows were wide open 
now; the more or less tousled heads of girls in all 
stages of dressing appeared, and disappeared 
again, at these windows. They called back and 
forth to each other; laughter rang happily from 
many of the dormitories; the waking life of the 
great school seemed, to the lonely girl, very charm- 
ing indeed. 

Why, among all these girls there must be some 
who would be friendly! This thought helped 


41 WHO IS SHE, ANYWAY? ” 87 

Nancy a great deal. She entered the building and 
joined the beginning of the line at the breakfast- 
room door, much encouraged. 

44 Look at these hungry young ones,” exclaimed 
Corinne Pevay, coming down the broad stair from 
the West Side, like a queen descending to give 
audience to her subjects. 

“Morning, Corinne! Morning, Miss Pevay!” 
were the cries of greeting. 

44 ‘ Good morning, little myrtle-blossoms! Let 
me tell you mommer’s plan ! * ” sing-songed the 
older girl. u ‘ Do some good to all the folkses ’ 
— Hullo, Carrie ! ” 

44 4 Good-morn-ing-Car-rie ! 5 ” sang the crowd 
of girls at the dining-room door as the captain of 
the East Side of the Hall appeared — Carrie Lit- 
tlefield. 

There was a burst of laughter, and Corinne 
held up her hand admonishingly. 

“Not so much racket, children!” she said. 
44 There ! the gate is opened, and you can all go in 
to pasture. Little lambkins ! ” 

Nancy was carried on by the line to the open 
door. The pleasant-faced woman who had stood 
in the doorway of the lodge the evening be- 
fore, was here, and she tapped Nancy on the 
shoulder. 

44 Go to the lower tables, my dear. You are 


88 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


a new girl, and all your class will be down there. 
What is your name?” 

“ Nancy Nelson.” 

“Yes, indeed. Your trunk and bag are here. 
Between eight and nine you may come to the 
trunk room in the basement and show me which of 
your possessions you wish carried to your room. 
Where is your room?” 

“ Number 30,” replied Nancy. 

“East or West?” 

“ West, ma’am.” 

“ I am Jessie Pease/’ said the good woman, 
smiling kindly on the orphan. “ If you need any- 
thing, my dear, come to Jessie; she’s the big sister 
of all you girls,” and she patted Nancy on the 
head as the girl, her heart warmed suddenly, went 
to her place at the end of the room. 

The girls of her class — the incoming class of 
new girls, or freshmen — took places at the table 
as they chose. There were no more than a score 
as yet. Some had already formed groups of 
acquaintanceship. Some few, like Nancy, were 
alone; but Nancy did not feel that she could force 
her company on any one of these other lonesome 
souls. She must wait for them to speak first to 
her. 

The sophomores filled their tables nearby, chat- 
tering and laughing. They looked with much 


“WHO IS SHE, ANYWAY? ” 89 

amusement at the freshmen, but some of the 
teachers were in the room now and the second- 
year girls thought it best not to “ rig ” their jun- 
iors openly. 

Nancy, however, saw several of the girls who 
had ridden in the ’bus with her from the station 
the night before. Last to arrive in the soph, 
group was the fat girl — Belle Macdonald. She 
was a pretty girl, but she was yawning still and 
her hair had been given only “ a lick and a prom- 
ise,” while her frock was not neat. 

In the middle of breakfast Carrie Littlefield, 
the captain of the East Side, walked slowly along 
the soph, tables and stopped behind Belle. Some 
of the girls began to giggle; the fat one looked 
a little scared, and for the moment seemed to lose 
a very hearty appetite. 

Carrie wrote something on a pad, tore off the 
paper, and thrust it into Belle’s hand. Then she 
went along the row gravely, plainly eyeing those 
girls who belonged to her own half of the school. 

“Nasty thing! ” Nancy heard somebody whis- 
pering shrilly. “ I bet she gave Belle all morn- 
ing in her room — and lessons don’t begin until 
to-morrow.” 

This was Cora Rathmore. Nancy’s roommate 
had come in at the very last minute and taken a 
seat not far from her. Cora, having been a 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


90 

month and a half at Pinewood in the spring, knew 
about the running of the school. 

The two captains — “ monitors ” they might be 
called — made it one of their duties to see that the 
girls came to table in the morning in neat array. 
Later they took a trip through the rooms to 
see that beds were properly stripped, windows 
open for airing, nightclothes hung away, and 
everything neat and tidy. 

Of course, the maids made beds, swept and 
dusted dormitories, and all that; but each girl was 
supposed to attend to her own personal belong- 
ings; slovenliness was frowned upon throughout 
the school. 

Nancy learned much that first forenoon at Pine- 
wood. She did not talk much with any of the 
girls — either of her own class or older. But she 
heard a good deal, and kept her eyes and ears 
open. 

She remembered what the lodgekeeper’s wife 
had told her, and she found her way to Jessie 
Pease’s room in the basement. There was a 
crowd of girls there already. They were laugh- 
ing, and joking, and teasing the good woman, who 
seemed, as she said, to be a “ big sister ” to them 
all. Nobody called her “Mrs. Pease;” she in- 
sisted upon their treating her as though she really 
were their older sister. 


9i 


“WHO IS SHE, ANYWAY?” 

Yet there was a way with Jessie Pease that kept 
even the rudest girl within bounds. They did not 
seek to take advantage of her — at least, if any of 
them tried to do so, they did not succeed. 

“ Now, you know very well, Elsie Spear,” the 
good woman was saying, shaking her head, “ that 
you cannot wear such things here at Pinewood. 
Your mother, I am sure, would not have allowed 
you to put a bun like that in your trunk had she 
known it ! ” 

“Well, my hats won’t stay on without it,” 
complained Elsie. “ And anyway, mother’s maid 
packed my trunk.” 

“ Your mother’s maid evidently does not know 
the rules of Pinewood Hall,” said Jessie Pease, 
severely. “ If your hats do not stay on without 
all that fluff, I’ll find you a cap to wear,” and she 
laughed. 

There were other contraband things, too. Each 
girl had to give up her keys and allow the woman 
to unpack her trunks. Such clothing and other 
possessions as were allowable, or necessary, were 
placed to one side for transportation to the 
owner’s dormitory. 

Some girls had whole trays full of gay banners, 
pictures, photographs, and the other “ litter ” that 
delight the heart of a boarding-school miss when 
she can decorate her dressing-case and wall. Of 


92 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

course, the freshies only had their home pictures 
and little silver or glass keepsakes and toilet sets. 

“ Now, my plump little pigeon,” said Jessie 
Pease to Nancy, as she laid out the school dresses 
which Miss Prentice had bought for her with the 
money Mr. Gordon had supplied, “ you seem 
nicely fixed for wearing apparel — and such plain, 
serviceable things, too. Not many of my girls 
come here so very sensibly supplied. 

“ And now, where are the pretty things — in your 
bag?” 

“ My old clothes are in the bag, please,” re- 
plied Nancy, bashfully. 

“ Oh ! but where are the pictures of the folks at 
home? And the little knicknacks they gave you 
when you came away?” said Jessie Pease, her 
fair face all one big smile. 

“ There — there aren’t any folks, please,” 
stammered Nancy. 

“What, dear?” gasped the woman, sitting 
straighter on her knees and staring at her. 

“ I am an orphan, and I have no friends, 
ma’am,” stammered Nancy, in so low a voice that 
nobody else could hear. 

“You poor girl! ” cried the woman, her smile 
fading, but love and welcome still shining in her 
big, brown eyes. 

She stretched forth her arms and — somehow — 


“WHO IS SHE, ANYWAY? ” 93 

Nancy found herself in the tight circle, with her 
head down in the curve of Jessie Pease’s motherly 
neck. 

“How long ago did you lose them, dear?” 
asked the good woman. 

“ Oh, a very long, long time ago,” sobbed 
Nancy. “ I was too little to remember — much.” 

“ And you’ve missed ’em ever since — you’ve 
just been honin’ for a mother, I know,” said the 
woman, crooningly, and patting Nancy’s shoulder. 

“There, there, child! It’ll all be strange to 
you here for a while; but when you can’t stand 
it any more — when it does seem as though you’d 
got to be mothered — you come down to the lodge 
to Jessie Pease. Remember, now! You will 
surely come? ” 

“ I will,” promised Nancy. 

“ Now wipe your eyes and laugh ! ” commanded 
Jessie Pease. “ Why, Pinewood Hall is the finest 
place in the world for girls — especially for those 
that are like you. Here’s a great, big family of 
sisters and cousins ready waiting for you. Get 
acquainted ! ” 

But that seemed easier said than done. Nancy 
was not by nature gloomy nor reticent; but it was 
unfortunate that she had been paired with Cora 
Rathmore. 

From the very first day the black-eyed girl tried 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


94 

to make it as unpleasant as possible for Nancy. 
Cora had plenty of acquaintances. They were 
always running into the room. But Cora never 
introduced any to her roommate. 

Cora was one of those girls who have many, 
many decorations for her room. Her dressing- 
case was stacked with photographs and all around 
and above it the wall was decorated with banners, 
and funny or pretty pictures, school pennants and 
the like. 

On the other side of the room Nancy’s wall 
and bureau were bare of any adornment. Her 
toilet set had been selected by Miss Prentice and 
was more useful than decorative. Nothing Nancy 
wore was frivolous. The other girls therefore 
set her down as “ odd.” 

“ Why, she hasn’t a single picture on her bu- 
reau,” said one girl who was visiting Cora. 
“ Don’t you suppose she has any folks?” 

“ Maybe they’re so ugly they’re afraid of break- 
ing the camera if they pose for a picture,” giggled 
another light-minded girl. 

“Well,” drawled Belle Macdonald, who was 
one of Cora’s sophomore friends, “ even an or- 
phan usually has pictures of the folks she’s lost. 
And this Nelson girl hasn’t told anything about 
herself; has she? ” 

“ She hasn’t told me, that’s sure,” snapped 


“ WHO IS SHE, ANYWAY? ” 95 

Cora. “ She’s a nobody, I believe. I don’t believe 
she belongs in this school with decent girls.” 

“ Oh, Cora! what do you mean? ” gasped one 
of her hearers. 

“ Well, Pinewood is supposed to be a school 
for well-connected girls. I know my mother 
would never have let me come had she supposed 
I was to be paired with a little Miss Nobody.” 

“ We ought to have our choice,” sighed another 
of the girls. 

“ And Grace and I were going to have such fun 
this half,” declared Cora. 

One of the others giggled. “ That’s why you 
weren’t allowed to be with Montgomery,” she 
remarked. “ I heard Corinne talking about it.” 

“Oh, that Canuck! I hate her,” said Cora, 
speaking thus disrespectfully about the West Side 
captain. 

“ Well, if any of us was in her place, I reckon 
we’d be strict, too. It means something to be 
captain of a side at Pinewood Hall,” said Belle, 
who, having been at the school longer than the 
others, had imbibed some of that loyalty which is 
bound to impregnate the atmosphere of a board- 
ing school. 

“ A fine chance Montgomery, or Cora, would 
have to be captain,” giggled another. 

“Yes! and who is going to be leader of the 


96 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

freshman class ?” demanded Cora. “The big 
girls have got something to say about that, I sup- 
pose? ” 

“ Some of the teachers will have,” laughed 
Belle. “ You’ll find that out. Who are you root- 
ing for, Cora?” 

“ Grace, of course ! Why, her father’s a 
senator, and she’s got lots of money. She’s in- 
fluential. She ought to be class president.” 

“All right; but the election isn’t allowed until 
just before Christmas. It will be the most popu- 
lar girl then, you’ll find. And she’ll have to be 
popular with the teachers as well as with you girls.” 

This conversation in Number 30, West Side, 
occurred something like a fortnight after school 
had opened. The girls were all at work by that 
time — those who would work, at least. 

Because she was so much alone, perhaps, Nancy 
Nelson’s record was all the better. But she did 
not sulk in her room. 

Indeed, Cora had so much company — girls who 
usually ignored Nancy altogether — that the or- 
phan was glad to get out when they appeared. 
And her refuge was the gym. There she became 
acquainted with the more athletic girls of the 
school. 

They found — even the sophs and juniors — that 
Nancy could play tennis and other games. She 


“WHO IS SHE, ANYWAY? 


97 


swam like a fish, too, and was eager to learn to 
row. The captain of the crew, the coach of the 
basketball team, and others of the older girls, 
began to pay some attention to Nancy. 

But with her own class she had not become 
popular. Nancy really had little more than a 
speaking acquaintance with any other freshman. 

Not being included in the group of girls who 
so often came to see Cora Rathmore in Number 
30, Nancy was debarred from other groups, too. 
Nobody came to see her in the room, and she was 
invited nowhere — perhaps because the other girls 
thought she must be “ in ” with the clique to 
which Cora belonged. 

At the head of this party of freshmen was the 
very proud girl named Grace Montgomery, whom 
Cora indefatigably aped. Girls who were proud 
of their parents’ money, or who catered to such 
girls because they were so much better off than 
their mates, for the most part made up this clique. 

There was not more than a score of them; but 
they clung together and were an influence in the 
class, although altogether there were nearly a 
hundred freshmen. 

As the days went by the lessons became harder 
and the teachers more strict. Nancy found that 
it was very hard to be put out of her own room 
in study time because of the chattering of other 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


98 

girls, many of whom, it seemed, did not care how 
they stood in their classes. 

“ Really, I cannot hear myself think! ” Nancy 
gasped one day when she had sat with her elbows 
on her desk, her hands clasped over her ears, 
trying to give all her attention to the text-book be- 
fore her. 

For half an hour there had been noise enough 
in Number 30 to drive a deaf and dumb person 
distracted. 

“Well, if you don’t like it, you can get out! ” 
snapped Cora, when Nancy complained. “ You’re 
not wanted here, anyway.” 

“ But I have as much right here as you have — 
and a better right than your friends,” said Nancy, 
for once aroused. 

“ I don’t think a girl like you has any business 
in the school at all,” cried Cora, angrily. “ Who 
knows anything about you ? Goodness me ! you’re 
a perfect Miss Nobody — I can’t find a living soul 
that knows anything about you. I don’t even 
know if your folks are respectable. I’ve written 
home to my folks about it — that’s what / have 
done,” pursued the angry girl. “ I’m going to 
find out if we girls who come from nice families 
have got to mix up with mere nobodies! ” 


CHAPTER XI 


ON CLINTON RIVER 

This was not the only unpleasant discussion 
Nancy Nelson had with her ill-tempered room- 
mate. But it was one of those that hurt Nancy 
the most. 

Whenever Cora hinted at the other girl’s lack 
of friends and relatives — at the mystery which 
seemed to surround her private life — Nancy could 
no longer talk. Sometimes she cried; but not 
often where her roommate could see her. 

There was a scrub crew for the eight-oared 
shell. Nancy made that, and Carrie Littlefield, 
who was the captain of the school crew, praised 
her work. 

The athletic instructor, Miss Etching, praised 
Nancy for her swimming and general athletic 
work. There wasn’t a freshie or soph who could 
stand against her on the tennis court. She had 
learned to play basketball, and played it well. 
The coach had her eye on Nancy for one of the 
best teams in the school. 


99 


100 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


On the other hand the girl from Higbee School 
stood well in her classes, and she had no black 
marks against her. No teacher had been forced 
to admonish Nancy, and Corinne Pevay had a 
cheerful word for her and a smile whenever Nancy 
crossed her path. 

And yet the girl could not be happy. Her own 
mates — the freshmen — seemed afraid of her. Or, 
at least, some of them did. And if Nancy was to 
have chums she must find them, of course, in her 
own class. 

For the first few weeks of a school year the new 
girls gradually get settled — both in their studies 
and in their friendships. Had Nancy by good 
chance been paired with a different girl — with a 
girl who had not already formed her own asso- 
ciates — matters might have gone along much more 
smoothly. 

But Cora disliked her from the start. And the 
black-eyed girl was sharp enough to see that ac- 
cusing Nancy of being “ a nobody ” for some 
reason hurt her roommate more than anything 
else. 

Therefore, being of a malicious disposition, 
Cora continued to harp upon this, until she had 
spread through the school the suspicion that 
Nancy had come to Pinewood Hall under unusual 
circumstances. Nobody knew where she had 


ON CLINTON RIVER 


IOI 


come from. She never spoke of her people, nor 
of where she had lived. 

And, of course, this was quite true. Nancy 
did not want to tell about her life at Higbee 
School. Fortunately no girl from Higbee had 
ever come to Pinewood Hall before, and the girl 
thought that her secret was safe. 

Cora and her friends might suspect, but they 
really knew nothing about Nancy’s past life. Al- 
ready some of the girls had received boxes from 
home — those delightful surprise boxes that give 
such a zest to boarding-school life. Nancy never 
received a letter, even. 

So, Nancy could not be very happy at Pinewood 
Hall. 

Other girls went around in recreation hours with 
their arms about each other’s waists, chattering 
with all the cheerfulness of blackbirds. They had 
“ secrets ” together and whispered about them in 
corners. There were little, harmless gatherings 
in the dormitories, sometimes after curfew; but 
Nancy had no part in these girlish dissipations. 

Perhaps it was her own fault. But the girl, 
who felt herself ostracized, feared a rebuff. As 
Madame Schakael had said to Corinne, Nancy was 
one of the sensitive ones. And the sensitive girl 
at boarding school is bound to have a hard time 
unless she very quickly makes a lasting friendship, 


102 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


or becomes a popular member of some group of 
her schoolfellows right at the start. 

When she felt very lonely in Number 30, or 
when Cora’s friends made it impossible for her 
to study, Nancy sought comfort — such as it was — 
in the gym., or in taking long walks by the river. 

The Pinewood estate was a large one and she 
did not have to go out of bounds to get plenty 
of walking exercise. Furthermore, as soon as 
the frost came, all the athletic girls were anxious 
about the ice. 

Clinton River was a quiet, if broad, stream 
and before the last of October the edges and the 
quiet pools inshore were skimmed over. Nancy, 
who loved skating, and had bought a beautiful 
pair of skates the year before with her own pocket- 
money, watched the forming ice almost daily. 

“ Great times on the river when it once 
freezes over,” she heard one girl say. “ And I 
bet the boys at the Academy are watching just as 
closely as we are.” 

Clinton Academy, Nancy had learned, was only 
a mile away. She had even seen its towers, from 
a distance. And some of Dr. Dudley’s boys had 
passed the lodge one day when Nancy was down 
there visiting Jessie Pease. 

For the girl had occasionally taken advantage 
of the invitation the lodge-keeper’s wife had ex- 


ON CLINTON RIVER 


103 


tended to her, and had visited her in the neat little 
cottage. Mrs. Pease frequently got some of the 
younger girls together in her kitchen on rainy days, 
and let them pull taffy and pop corn, and other- 
wise enjoy themselves. 

Yet, once away from the presence of the kind- 
hearted matron, Nancy found herself no closer 
to her schoolmates than before. 

November brought dark nights and black frost. 
Clintondale was well up toward the Great Lakes 
and sometimes the winter arrives early in that 
part of the country. 

It did so this year — the first of Nancy Nelson’s 
sojourn at Pinewood Hall. One morning Nancy 
got up while it was still dark, slipping out to the 
bathroom as noiselessly as a little gray ghost — 
her robe was of that modest color. There she 
swiftly made her toilet and then as quietly dressed 
in Number 30. 

She had learned to do all this without rousing 
Cora, for her roommate was very unpleasant 
indeed if she woke up in the morning and found 
Nancy stirring about the room. No matter if the 
rising bell had rung, Cora always accused Nancy, 
on these occasions, of deliberately spoiling her 
morning nap. Cora was a sleepy-head in the 
morning, and always appeared to “ get out of bed 
on the wrong side.” 


io 4 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

However, Nancy left Number 30 without dis- 
turbing her roommate on this morning and, well 
wrapped up against the biting cold, slipped down- 
stairs and out of one of the rear doors. The 
front door of Pinewood Hall had not been un- 
chained at that hour. 

She was the first girl out and it was an hour 
yet to breakfast time. She ran straight through 
the pine woods at the back, passing the gymnasium 
and frozen courts, and so down to the river. 

A pale moon still hung low on the horizon. 
The river seemed as black as ink and not a ripple 
appeared upon its surface. 

“ Oh, dear! it’s not frozen at all,” was Nancy’s 
first thought. 

And then she saw the sheen of the moonlight 
across the black surface. 

“That never is water in the world!” she 
gasped, and half running, half sliding, descended 
the steep bank to the verge of the river. 

The wide expanse of the stream proved to be 
sheathed entirely in black, new ice. 

Nancy uttered a cry of delight and touched it 
with one strongly-shod foot, and then the other. 
It rang under her heel — there was not a single 
crack of protest. It bore her weight as firmly as 
a rock. 

Breathlessly Nancy tried it farther out. The 


ON CLINTON RIVER 


105 


keen frost of a single night had chained the river 
firmly. She slid a little way. Then she ran for 
momentum, and slid smoothly, well balanced from 
her hips, with her feet wide spread. Her red lips 
opened with a sigh of delight. Her eyes sparkled 
and the hair was tossed back from under her 
woolen cap. 

“Great! Great!” she cried aloud, when she 
came to a stop. 

She went back down the slide. Her boots rang 
on the ice as though it were steel. Again and 
again she slid until there was a well-defined path 
upon the ice — a path at least ten yards long. 

But the horizon grew rosy-red and the dropping 
moon paled into insignificance. This warned her 
that the breakfast call would soon sound and she 
left the ice reluctantly and ran back to the hall. 

Before she reached the kitchens the sun popped 
up and she ran in the path made by its glowing 
rays across the frozen fields. 

It was so cold that the early rising girls were 
hugging the radiators in the big hall when Nancy 
came in from the rear, all in a delightful glow. 
Some of them nodded to her. One girl even said : 

“ You’ve got pluck to go out for your constitu- 
tional a morning like this, Miss Nelson.” 

But to Nancy’s ear it seemed as though the girl 
said it in a patronizing way. She was a junior. 


10 6 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


Nobody else spoke to the freshman. So Nancy 
had the secret of the frozen river to herself. She 
meant to go skating that day if she could. 

Every morning the girls of Pinewood Hall took 
their places after breakfast — class by class — in the 
hall which balanced the dining room in the other 
wing of the big house. A brief service of a de- 
votional character always began the real work of 
the day. Usually Madame Schakael presided at 
these exercises. And sometimes she had that to 
say before dismissing the girls that showed them 
that she had a keen oversight of the school’s man- 
ners and morals. 

“ I know,” she said, on this morning, standing 
upon the footstool which was always kept behind 
the desk-pulpit for her; “ I know that many of you 
have been watching and waiting, with great eager- 
ness, for the skating season to set in. Jack Frost, 
young ladies, seldom disappoints us here at Pine- 
wood Hall. The river is frozen over.” 

Here her remarks were punctuated by applause, 
and some suppressed “ Oh, goodies! ” The Ma- 
dame smiled indulgently at this enthusiasm. 

“ Our rules regarding the sport are pretty well 
understood, I believe. No skating save during 
certain designated hours, and never unless Mr. 
Pease, or the under gardener, is at the boathouse. 
Bounds extend from the railroad bridge up the 


ON CLINTON RIVER 


107 


river toward town, to the Big Bend half a mile 
below our boathouse. The girl who skates out of 
bounds — they are plain enough — will not skate 
again for a month. Don’t forget that, girls. 

“ And now, for the rule that has always been 
in force at Pinewood,” pursued the Madame, more 
earnestly, “ and the one to which I must demand 
perfect obedience. 

“ No girl is to try the ice by herself. No ven- 
turesome one must go down there and try the ice 
without Mr. Pease, or Samuel, being on hand. 
Remember! 

“ And,” said Madame Schakael, slowly, “ I 
hear that there has already been somebody on the 
ice this morning. Whether it was one of you 
girls, or not, we do not know. But when Mr. 
Pease came to report to me that the ice was safe 
for skating he informed me that somebody had 
been sliding down there, early as it was when he 
reached the river. 

“ If any girl has broken our ironclad rule on 
this point, I want to know it. I expect to see that 
girl at once after prayers. Of course, if nobo'dy 
here is guilty we must believe that some passer-by 
ventured down upon the river while crossing Pine- 
wood estate. 

“ Now, young ladies, I need say nothing more 
on this subject, I believe. After recitations to-day, 


io8 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

those who wish may enjoy the pleasure and exer- 
cise of ice-skating. The boathouse will be warmed. 
Samuel will be there to sharpen skates for those 
who wish. And he can supply you with extra 
straps or other appliances. You understand that 
he makes a little extra money that way, and I 
approve of it.” 

Then she touched the rising bell, and instantly 
the girls arose and a bustle of low converse and 
the rustle of dresses and clack of shoes on the 
polished floor made up the usual confusion of 
sounds as the girls separated for their classrooms. 
Nearly four hundred girls manage to make con- 
siderable noise. 

Nancy went immediately to the Madame’s office. 
It was the first time she had ever been called there; 
it was the first time, indeed, that she had ever been 
accused of any kind of a fault since arriving at 
the school. 

So she did not feel very happy. She had not 
known of the rule which Madame Schakael had 
said was so well understood. She had not meant 
to break the law. 

But she could see very clearly that the rule was 
a just one. She had no business to venture on 
the ice without asking permission. And her heart 
throbbed and her face flushed and paled by turns 
as she waited for the principal to appear. 


ON CLINTON RIVER 


109 


But when Madame Schakael entered the ante- 
room she was not alone. Nancy, from within, 
heard another voice — a shrill and unpleasant voice 
which she very well knew. 

“ Well, I don’t care what you say, Madame, it 
was her. There’s no other girl in the whole school 
who gets up so early and disturbs us other girls — 
so now! She’s stirring around half the night, I 
declare ! And she was the only girl out of doors 
this morning so early.” 

“ And she is your roommate; is she, Miss Rath- 
more?” interrupted the Madame’s smooth, low 
voice. 

“ Well! I never wanted her! I wrote home 
and told my mother she was a nobody ” 

“ Your mother was kind enough to write to me 
on the subject,” said the principal of Pinewood 
Hall. “ But I could not allow any change in the 
dormitory arrangements for the inconsequential 
reasons given. Nancy Nelson is quite the same as 
any other girl at the Hall. I wish to hear nothing 
more on that topic, Cora. 

“ But this other matter, of course, is different. 
If a rule has been broken of course I must take 
cognizance of it. And I feel sure' that if your 
roommate was the person on the ice this morning, 
she will report the fact to me herself ” 

She pushed the office door wide open. Nancy 


* 


no A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


had listened to this conversation perforce. There 
had been no escape for her. 

“Ah! As I expected,” said the doll-like little 
woman, smiling calmly at Nancy. “ You see how 
mistaken one may be, Cora ? Nancy is here ahead 
of us.” 

Cora Rathmore shrank back from the door with 
a very red face. Nancy’s eyes flashed as she 
looked at her ill-natured roommate. She realized 
well enough that Cora had deliberately — and with- 
out sufficient evidence herself — tried to get her into 
trouble with the principal. 

Cora was not easily embarrassed, however. In 
a moment she shot the other girl a scornful glance 
and, without a word to Madame Schakael, walked 
out of the office. It really did seem as though it 
was Nancy who had done the wrong, instead of 
her roommate. 

“ You are here to see me, Miss Nelson? ” asked 
the Madame, briskly, ignoring the other girl and 
her report. 

“ Yes, Madame.” 

“ Because of what I said at prayers? ” 

“ Yet, Madame.” 

“You are a new girl. Did you not know of 
the rule that all girls must keep off the river until 
it is pronounced safe by Mr. Pease?” 

“ I did not know of the rule. And I did not 


ON CLINTON RIVER 


hi 


think that I was doing wrong when I went on the 
ice this morning/’ returned Nancy, quietly. 

“ I believe you, Miss Nelson. You are excused. 
Don’t do it again. I can’t afford to have any of 
my girls drowned — especially one who stands as 
well as you do in the weekly reports,” and the little 
woman patted her on her cheek and smiled. 

“ You may go skating this afternoon, if you 
wish, and if you are perfect in your recitations, as 
I suppose you will be,” continued Madame Scha- 
kael. “Wait, my dear! Here are two letters 
for you. They are both from Mr. Henry Gor- 
don’s office, and I presume they are from him. I 
make it a rule never to open letters from the 
parents or guardians of my girls ; other letters, you 
understand, must be scrutinized unless the corre- 
spondence has already been arranged for.” 

She passed the wondering Nancy two business- 
like looking envelopes with the card printed in the 
corner of “ Ambrose, Necker & Boles.” 

“ Thank you, Madame,” said the girl, and 
hurried away to her first class with the letters 
fairly burning a hole in her pocket. 

There would be no opportunity before the first 
intermission — at 10:30 o’clock — to look at their 
contents. 


CHAPTER XII 


THE FIRST ADVANCE 

Madame Schakael had prophesied that Nancy 
would be perfect in her recitations that day, and 
so there would be no doubt of her being able to 
go skating on the river. But with the unexpected 
letters from Mr. Gordon’s office unopened, it 
seemed hardly probable that Nancy would pull 
through the day without a reprimand. 

u What is the matter with you, Miss Nelson? ” 
demanded one of the teachers sharply, when Nancy 
had made an unusually brainless answer to a very 
simple question. 

Nancy came out of her haze with a sharp shock. 

“ Why — why, Miss Maybrick, I know very 
much better than that,” she admitted. 

“ Where is your mind, then, Miss? ” 

“ I— I ” 

Nancy was usually frankness personified, and 
she blurted it out now: 

“ I’m wondering what is in the two letters I 
have in my pocket, Miss Maybrick.” 


1 12 


THE FIRST ADVANCE 


113 

“ Where did you get them? ” demanded the sus- 
picious teacher. 

“ Madame Schakael gave them to me. I sup- 
pose they are from my guar ” No! she 

could not claim Henry Gordon as her guardian. 
“ From the gentleman who pays my bills here,” 
she added, in a lower voice. 

“Well, for mercy’s sake go to your seat and 
read them,” said the instructor, but more mildly. 
“ They may be important. And having mastered 
their contents, please try to master the lesson.” 

Nancy did as she was bid. With trembling 
fingers she opened one of the envelopes. They 
both were typewritten as to address; but one 
seemed addressed by an amateur in the art of type- 
writing. Nancy opened the other first. 

The enclosure was a slip of paper on which was 
written in a hurried scrawl: 

“ You may need something extra. This is for 
your own use. — H. Gordon.” 

And wrapped in this paper was a crisp twenty- 
dollar bill ! 

Nancy had scarcely spent a penny of her care- 
fully hoarded pocket money since coming to Pine- 
wood Hall. Indeed, she had found no oppor- 
tunity for using it. 

There had been plenty of secret “ spreads ” and 


1 1 4 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ fudge orgies ” in other rooms. Cora had been 
to a lot of them, and had always slipped back into 
Number 30 without being caught by any prowling 
teacher. 

But of course Nancy had been invited to con- 
tribute to none of these, and she was a particularly 
healthy girl with a particularly healthy appetite: 
so she did not crave “ sponge cake and pickles,” or 
other combinations of forbidden fruits supposed 
to be the boarding-school misses’ extreme delight. 

Mr. Gordon had sent the banknote to her with- 
out any more feeling, seemingly, than he would 
have had in throwing a bone to a dog. Yet, it 
might be his way of showing her sympathy. Nancy 
slipped it back in the envelope and picked up the 
second letter. 

And before she opened this she believed she 
knew what it contained. She had not forgotten 
“ Scorch ” O’Brien. Scorch had promised to 
watch “ Old Gordon ” and write to her. He had 
used one of the office envelopes and had stolen a 
minute when some typewriter was not in use. 

Madame Schakael thought both letters were 
from Mr. Gordon. Nancy was too curious as to 
what Scorch had written to deny herself the read- 
ing of the contraband epistle. 

It was much blotted and the scrawl characteristic 
of an office boy’s chirography proved that his 


THE FIRST ADVANCE 


1 15 

terms at public school had not done Scorch much 
good. This was the letter: 

“ Nancy Nelson, 

Dear Miss: 

I guess you haven’t forgotten Scorch O’Brien. 
That’s me. I said I’d rite if I got a line on Old 
Gordon, that he was doing you queer. I bet he 
is, but I don’t know nothing for sure yet. I put 
a twist on him this morning and I see a letter now 
in the male-basket for you, so I says to myself, 
4 Scorch, what you said took like vaccination.’ 
Ouch ! me arm hurts yet ! 

Well, I says to Old G., says I, ‘ What’s come 
of the girl what blew me to lunch at the Arran- 
dale? She was some swell little dame, she was.’ 

Says he, 4 Mindi your own business, Scorch. 
That’s a good motto for you to paste up over 
your desk.’ 

‘ Nix,’ says I. 4 If I didn’t mind everybody 
else’s biz in this office the whole joint would go to 
grass.’ And that’s right. 4 That girl’s just the 
same as in jail at that boarding-school,’ says 
I. 4 Have you forgotten her? ’ 

4 How’d I remember? ’ says he, looking sort of 
queer. 

4 Come across with a piece of change for her,’ 
says me — I’m practerkal, I be. Money always 
comes in handy; now, don’t it? Write an’ tell me 
if he took my tip. And no more now, from, 

44 Yours respectfully, 

44 Scorch O’Brien.” 


ii 6 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


It was Scorch all over— that letter! Nancy 
Nelson came near laughing right out in the class- 
room; but she could cram both letters into her 
pocket and go on with her studies with a more 
composed mind. 

Scorch was evidently her friend. And emi- 
nently practical, as he declared. Nothing could 
be more practical than that twenty-dollar bill. 
And the red-haired Irish boy had put it into Mr. 
Gordon’s mind to send her this substantial tip. 

She took the twenty-dollar bill out and looked at 
it again. It was very real. 

Cora Rathmore sat behind her in this class. 
Nancy happened to turn about as she slipped the 
banknote out of sight again, and she saw that her 
roommate was looking hard at her. Nancy turned 
away herself. She was angrier with Cora than she 
had ever been before since the opening of Pine- 
wood Hall. 

Jennie Bruce, one of the girls of her class whom 
Nancy admired the most, leaned over and whis- 
pered to her: 

“ Goodness me ! but you are the wealthy girl. 
Was that real money, or just stage money? ” 

Jennie was a thin, snappy girl, with dancing 
eyes, a continual smile, and as elusive as a drop 
of mercury. She just couldn’t keep still, and she 
was always getting minor marks in deportment 


THE FIRST ADVANCE 


117 

because her sense of fun was sure to bubble over 
at inopportune times. 

“ I — I guess it’s real money,” whispered Nancy, 
although talking during lessons was frowned on 
by all the instructors. 

But Nancy was only too glad when Jennie Bruce 
spoke to her. She was just a little afraid of Jen- 
nie’s sharp tongue; and yet she had never been the 
butt of any of the harum-scarum’s jokes. Perhaps 
Jennie had spared Nancy because the latter was so 
much alone. The fun-loving one was not cruel. 

“ Twen-ty-dol-lars,” whispered Jennie, with big 
eyes. “ You certainly are rich. What a lot of 
pickles that would buy ! ” and she grinned. 

Nancy smiled. She knew that Jennie was 
only in fun when she suggested such an expendi- 
ture. But the thought smote the lonely girl’s mind 
that by the spending of this money in “ treating ” 
she might gain a certain popularity among the 
other girls. 

Really, that was what made Grace Montgomery 
so popular. She had more money to spend than 
almost any other girl in the school — in the fresh- 
man class, at least. Nancy asked herself seriously 
if she should strive to make friendships through 
such a channel. 

Young as she was, the girl had serious thoughts 
at times, and this was one of the times. She hid 


1 1 8 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


the money in the bosom of her dress and at recess 
said nothing about it, although she saw several of 
the girls whispering and pointing her out. 

But the most surprising thing that happened was 
Cora coming to her almost as soon as they were 
released from the classrooms for a short run in 
the basement recreation room. 

“ I suppose you think I’m a mean thing,” said 
the black-eyed girl, glancing at Nancy askance. 

“ I’ll leave it for you to sayT returned Nancy. 
“ If I had run to Madame Schakael with a story 
about you ” 

“ How do you know I went to her? ” snapped 
Cora. “ She asked me where you were. You 
slipped into her office so quick that she thought 
you were trying to get out of it, of course. She 
knew all the time that you were the girl who had 
been on the ice.” 

Now, Nancy did not believe this at all; but she 
said nothing to show Cora that she distrusted her 
first friendly (?) advance. 

“ Anyway,” said the- black-eyed one, “ she did 
ask me about you, and if you were out early, as 
usual. Oh! you can’t fool the Madame.” 

“ I shouldn’t want to try,” observed Nancy, 
quietly. 

“ Well ! if you didn’t act so offish we girls would 
like to be friends with you,” said Cora, tucking 


THE FIRST ADVANCE 119 

her arm into Nancy’s. “ Going skating this after- 
noon? ” 

This was the first time any girl at Pinewood 
Hall had ever walked in a “ chummy ” manner 
with Nancy. But to tell the truth, Nancy was not 
sure whether this overture towards peace on the 
part of her roommate really meant anything or 
not. 

There were lots of the girls whom she thought 
she would like better than Cora — or her friends. 
There was the lively Jennie Bruce, for instance. 
Nancy often watched her flitting back and forth, 
from group to group, being “ hail-fellow-well- 
met ” with them all. Jennie made friends without 
putting forth any effort, it seemed. 

“ Oh, I wish I had Jennie for a roommate,” 
thought Nancy Nelson. “ I really would be happy 
then, I do believe.” 

But this day seemed not to be a bad one for 
Nancy, after all. Cora waited for her, with her 
skates, after recitations were over, and they joined 
a party of Cora’s chums on the way to the river. 

Grace Montgomery was not among these; Grace 
never had a word for Nancy, so the younger girl 
kept away from the senator’s daughter. 

But the river was broad, and the ice was like 
glass, and in the exhilaration of the sport Nancy 
forgot snubs and back-biting, and all the ill-natured 


120 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


slights under which she had suffered since becoming 
a dweller in Number 30, West Side, Pinewood 
Hall. 

She noted one thing that afternoon. Few of 
the girls skated toward the railroad bridge; but 
most of them to the school bounds in the other 
direction. The reason for skating down the river 
instead of up Nancy did not at first understand. 
Then she heard some of Cora’s friends talking 
and laughing about it. 

“ Guess the old doctor has a grouch again. 
Isn’t that mean? There isn’t a boy in sight.” 

“ Not one!” 

“ Isn’t it horrid of him?” cried another. 

“ I’ll wager the old doctor has a channel sawed 
through the ice at the bend here before he lets 
the boys out,” declared a third. 

“ I did want so to see Bob Endress,” Grace 
Montgomery complained. “ I want him to bring 
a lot of nice boys home from the Academy at the 
holidays, so as to have them at my party.” 

It struck Nancy that she had heard this Bob 
Endress spoken of before; but she had no idea 
that there was any reason why she should be in- 
terested in him. 

The girls came in from the ice half an hour be- 
fore supper, cold, tired, but merry. Nancy ran 
up to tidy her hair and wash. She found two of 


THE FIRST ADVANCE 


I 2 1 


Cora’s chief chums in Number 30; but Cora herself 
chanced to be out. 

These girls did not even notice Nancy when she 
came in. But that was not strange. Often a 
dozen would come and go at Number 30 without 
once speaking to the quiet little girl who occupied 
one-half of the dormitory. 

“ Well, you take it from me,” one was saying 
to the other while Nancy brushed her hair, “ she’s 
got to do her share. It looks to me as though 
she was sponging.” 

“ Oh, do you think so? ” 

“ Everybody else has put up for a fudge party, 
or something of the kind, while she hasn’t done a 
thing.” 

“ Maybe she hasn’t the money?” 

Then she shouldn’t be in on all the other 
girls’ good times. And she wouldn’t be if she 
didn’t toady so to Grace.” 

“ Ah, now ” 

“ That’s right. Lou would have left her out 
of the pound party last week, only of course Grace 
demanded to look over the list of invited guests.” 

“ Well ! I do think Grace takes too much upon 
herself sometimes.” 

“ She’s going to be class president. Voting 
comes just before the Christmas holidays, and 
when we come back we’ll know who gets the chair. 


122 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


Madame doesn’t allow the freshies to organize 
until then. Well! Cora’s got to do different.” 

“ Mamie Beasley says she isn’t going to in- 
vite her to her tea on Friday. And, you know, the 
teachers approve of afternoon teas. It makes for 
sociability, they say.” 

“ But Cora ” 

“Hush-up!” commanded another. “Want 
everybody to hear you ? ” and she motioned toward 
Nancy. The latter saw her in the glass. 

So the two went out. Nancy wondered if Cora 
was so popular, after all. If it was Cora of whom 
the two were speaking. 

She noted, however, that for a day or two Cora 
remained in her room, and few of her friends 
visited her. This suited Nancy very well, even if 
she did not like her roommate. The dormitory 
was quieter and one could study. 

“ My mother’s just as mean as she can be ! ” 
blurted out Cora one day when she and Nancy 
were alone. “ She won’t give me another cent of 
pocket-money until the week we go home for 
Christmas. And I spent all my allowance right 
away when school opened. Did you, Nancy?” 

“ Did I what?” asked Nancy, looking up from 
her book. 

“ Have you spent all your allowance ? ” 

“ No-o,” said Nancy slowly, not quite sure that 


THE FIRST ADVANCE 


123 

she had an allowance, Mr. Gordon gave her money 
so irregularly. 

“Lucky girl! And I promised I’d give the 
crowd a big blow-out here next week. I sent to 
mother for the money, and told her about it, and 
she won’t even send me another box of goodies.” 

“ That is too bad,” observed Nancy, with a 
faint smile. 

“ Isn’t it? ” exclaimed Cora. “ And they’ll all 
say Number 30 is so mean! I hate to have our 
room get that name.” 

This was the first time that Nancy had supposed 
Cora cared anything for the reputation of the 
room. Certainly, she had never before appeared 
to consider that Nancy and she had anything in 
common. 

“ You see, we’re just freshmen, and the sophs 
criticise us so. I got acquainted with Belle Mac- 
donald and some of those other girls away back 
last spring. They expect us freshies to treat them 
if we want their friendship.” 

“ I don’t think that friendships bought in that 
way last; do you? ” asked Nancy. 

“ Say! how do you expect to get popular in a 
school like this? ” demanded Cora, in disgust. 

“ I — I don’t know,” sighed Nancy. 

“How is it Grace is so popular?” cried Cora 
Rathmore. “ Why, she’s always doing something 


124 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

to get the other girls interested. She’s going to be 
our class president.” 

Nancy said nothing. She wondered if Grace 
Montgomery, after all, was quite as popular as 
Cora thought. 

“ I tell you what,” said the black-eyed girl, 
suddenly, “ let’s have a party in here, any- 
way? ” 

“ Why, I — I don’t know anything about giving 
a party,” confessed Nancy. “ And I’m afraid the 
girls wouldn’t come.” 

“ Sure they will — in a minute ! ” declared Cora, 
confidently. “ All I’ve got to do is to tell ’em. 
You see, I’ve been making friends in Pinewood 
Hall, while you’ve been ‘ boning.’ Some of them 
think you are too stiff.” 

“ I don’t mean to be,” protested Nancy, shaking 
her head. 

“ Well, here’s a chance for you to show ’em. 
You say you’ve got some money left? ” 

“ Oh, yes.” 

“ How much? ” asked Cora, bluntly. 

“Well — I’ve got more than twenty dollars,” 
confessed Nancy. 

“ Crickey-me ! ” gasped Cora. “ Twenty dol- 
lars? Why, we’d give the dandiest kind of a 
spread — salad, and ice cream, and cakes — Oh, 
crickey-me ! that would be great.” 


THE FIRST ADVANCE 


125 

“But what would Corinne say?” blurted out 
Nancy. 

“Hah! those big girls have after-lights-out 
spreads, too. That Canuck won’t dare say a 
word.” 

“ But some of the teachers ” 

“You needn’t borrow trouble,” said Cora. 

“ Of course, if you don’t want to do it ” 

“ I— I ” 

“ Sure, you understand that I’ll pay my half,” 
went on Cora, eagerly. “ All you got to do is to 
lend me the money until Chistmas time.” 

“ Oh, that’s not it! ” cried Nancy, who was nat- 
urally a generous-hearted girl. 

“ Then you’re in for it? ” 

“ If — if you think the other girls will like it? ” 

“Sure they will!” cried Cora. “Hurrah! 
Now, you leave it to me. I’ll tell Grace first of 
all, and we’ll pick out a nice crowd. Why, with 
twenty dollars we can have at least twenty girls.” 

Nancy began to enthuse a little herself. She 
longed so to be friendly with her own class, es- 
pecially. There was Jennie Bruce, the fun-loving 
girl, and several others whom she particularly 
liked. Of course, they would all have to be 
domiciled in the West Side. No girl could cross 
from one side of the Hall to the other after cur- 
few without being observed. 


126 r A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


And the spread which Cora planned was not to 
begin until all the lights were out and the teacher, 
whose turn it was to be on that night, had gone her 
rounds to see that all the dormitories were quiet. 

“ We’ll take a night when Maybrick is on, if 
we can,” said Cora. “ She goes to bed to sleep ! 
No prowling around for her after she has once 
decided that all the chickens are on the roost.” 

And Nancy, with a suspicion deep in her mind 
that it was all wrong, and yet willing to suffer 
much for the sake of gaining “ popularity,” so- 
called, allowed Cora to go ahead with the prepara- 
tions for the coming surreptitious feast. 


CHAPTER XIII 


S 


IT PROVES DISASTROUS 

Nancy might have given too much thought and 
time to the coming “ midnight spread,” and neg- 
lected her lessons a bit had Cora Rathmore not 
taken the entire arrangements for the affair into 
her own hands. Cora did not seem to mind get- 
ting only “ fair ” marked on her weekly reports. 
She just shrugged her shoulders and said: 

“ I should worry! ” 

But before Nancy plucked up the courage to say 
anything about who was to be invited she found 
that Cora had already seen to that — Cora and 
Grace Montgomery. 

“ I’d like to have Jennie Bruce come,” Nancy 
suggested timidly one day. 

“Goodness! why didn’t you say so before?” 
snapped Cora. 

“Why? Won’t there be room for her?” 

“We’ve made up the whole list, and the 
girls have been invited. We couldn’t squeeze in 
another girl.” 

“ Why — why, who made up the list? ” 

127 


128 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“ Grace and I. Here it is,” and Cora snapped 
a paper upon Nancy’s desk. 

Nancy read it over without comment. There 
wasn’t a girl invited to the party at Number 30, 
West Side, whom Nancy liked any better than she 
did Cora herself ! She began to doubt if the com- 
ing entertainment was going to be a success — as 
far as she was concerned — after all. 

The girls ran in to see Cora again. Even Grace 
appeared in Number 30. But none of them spoke 
more than perfunctorily to Nancy, and the lonely 
girl felt herself as much “ out of it ” as ever. 

But she had one enjoyment now that made up 
for many previous lonely hours at the school. She 
could skate ! 

Clinton River remained frozen over; the ice 
grew thicker and the lodgekeeper and Samuel re- 
ported each morning that it was perfectly safe. 

The boys from the Academy, too, appeared. 
Nancy was not much interested in them — only 
curious. Even the girls of her own class seemed 
to be very desirous of making acquaintances among 
the Academy boys. 

“ You see,” Jennie Bruce told her, “ after the 
holidays we have entertainments at the Hall, and 
Dr. Dudley lets his boys give a minstrel show. 
We each have a dance during the winter — one at 
the Academy and one at the Hall; and if you know 


IT PROVES DISASTROUS 


129 


some of the boys beforehand it’s lots easier to get 
partners at the dance.” 

“ I’d just as lief dance with another girl, I 
think,” said Nancy, timidly. 

“ Pshaw! that’s no fun,” returned Jennie. 

“ I never did dance with a boy,” admitted 
Nancy. “ Where — where I lived only the girls 
danced together.” 

“ Where was that? ” demanded Jennie. 

“ At school,” said Nancy, blushing, and sorry 
she had said so much now. 

“ Oh ! a ‘ kid ’ school? ” laughed Jennie. 

“ Well— yes.” 

“ Where was it?” 

“ It — it was a long way from here,” responded 
Nancy, slowly. 

She couldn’t bear to tell even Jennie — with 
whom she so desired to be friends — where Higbee 
School was located. Of course, Jennie noticed this 
point of mystery, and she looked at Nancy curi- 
ously. The latter couldn’t find another word to 
say. 

She skated off by herself. The ringing ice was 
delightful. Nancy skated as well as any boy, while 
she was naturally — being a girl — more graceful in 
her motions. 

She sped like a dart across the river, came 
around in a great curve, like a bird tacking against 


i 3 o A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

a stiff breeze, and then started back “ on the 
roll.” 

Hands in her jersey pockets, her skates tapping 
the ice firmly as she bore her weight first on one, 
then on the other foot, Nancy seemed fairly to 
float over the frozen river. 

She saw a group of girls and boys standing about 
where the Hall boundary was; but she did not 
recognize any of them until she was rolling past. 
Then she heard Grace Montgomery’s shrill voice : 

“ Oh, she’s only showing off. Her name’s 
Nelson. Cora knows all about her.” 

“ No, I don’t,” snapped Cora Rathmore’s 
voice. “ But she’s chummed on me.” 

Nancy heard no more. She didn’t want to. 
She realized that, after all, behind her back these 
girls were speaking just as unkindly of her as 
ever. 

Suddenly she realized that the group had broken 
up. At least, one of the boys had darted out of 
it and was racing down toward her. 

“ What’s the matter with you, Bob ? ” she heard 
Grace call after the boy. 

“ Say! I know that girl,” a cheerful voice de- 
clared, and the next moment the speaker, bending 
low, and racing like a dart, reached Nancy’s side. 

“ Hold on! Don’t you remember me?” he 
exclaimed. 


IT PROVES DISASTROUS 


131 

Nancy looked at him, startled. His plump, 
rosy, smiling face instantly reflected an image in 
her memory. 

“ I’m Bob Endress,” he said. “ But if it hadn’t 
been for you I wouldn’t have had any name at all 
— or anything else in life. Don’t you remem- 
ber?” 

It was the boy who had been saved from the 
millrace that August afternoon. Of course Nancy 
couldn’t have forgotten him. But she was so con- 
fused she did not know what to say for the mo- 
ment. 

“ You haven’t forgotten throwing that tire to 
me?” he cried. “Why! that was the smartest 
thing ! The chauffeur would never have thought 
of it. And Grace and those other girls would 
have been about as much use as so many mice. 
You were as good as a boy, you were. I’d have 
been drowned.” 

“ I — I’m glad you weren’t,” she gasped. 

“Then you remember me?” 

“ Oh, yes. I couldn’t forget your face.” 

“ Well ! ” he cried, “ I never did expect to see 
you around this part of the country. But I told 
father I wanted to go back there to Malden next 
summer and see if I couldn’t come across you. 
And my mother wrote to a friend there about you, 
too. We all wanted to know who you were.” 


I3 2 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“ I — I am Nancy Nelson,” said the girl, timidly. 

“ Sure ! Grace, or somebody, was just speaking 
of you,” said the boy. “ You see, I was motoring 
through that country on the way to Chicago, in 
Senator Montgomery’s car. That was a pretty 
spot at that old mill and the girls saw the lilies. 
So I had to wade in for them — like a chump,” and 
he laughed. 

“ It was dangerous, I suppose,” confessed 
Nancy. “ But I often longed to wade in myself 
for them.” 

“ And you got them anyway ! ” he cried, burst- 
ing into another laugh. “ Grace and the others 
were sore about it. They had to wait until we 
got to the next town before we found any more 
lilies. Then I got a boat and went after them.” 

Nancy had stopped skating, and she and the 
boy stood side by side, talking. What the Mont- 
gomery girl and her friends would think about 
this Nancy did not at the time imagine. 

“ But it’s funny Grace didn’t recognize you,” 
said Bob, suddenly. 

“ No. In the confusion they wouldn’t have 
noticed me very closely,” Nancy replied. 

“Well! I don’t see how Grace could have 
missed knowing such a jolly girl as you.” 

His boyish, outspoken opinion amused Nancy. 
Although Bob was at least three years her senior 


IT PROVES DISASTROUS 


i33 

she soon became self-possessed. Girls are that 
way — usually. 

“ You’re a dandy skater,” said Bob. “ Will 
you skate with me? ” 

“Oh, yes; if you want me to,” replied Nancy. 

She had never skated with a boy before. They 
crossed hands and started off on the long roll. 
Nancy was just as sturdy on her skates as the boy. 
It was delightful to cross the ice so easily, yet 
swiftly, and feel that one’s partner was perfectly 
secure, too. 

And Bob Endress was such a nice boy. Nancy 
decided that her first good opinion of him, formed 
when she had seen him wading in the millpond 
after water-lilies, was correct. He was gentle- 
manly, frank, and as jolly as could be. 

She remembered very well now that she had 
heard various other girls at Pinewood Hall talk 
of Bob Endress. He was some distant connection 
of the haughty Grace Montgomery. 

And he had left Grace and all those other girls 
in a minute to renew his odd acquaintance with 
Nancy. 

The latter could not fail to feel a glow all 
through her at this thought. She had all the as- 
pirations of other girls. She wanted to be liked 
by people — even by boys. And Bob was evidently 
a great favorite with her schoolmates. 


I 34 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


Round and round the course they skated. It 
seemed to Nancy as though she never would tire 
with such a partner. And she forgot that the 
girls Bob had deserted might be offended with her. 
For once — a tiny, short hour — Nancy Nelson was 
perfectly happy. 

Until the distant chime in the tower of Pine- 
wood Hall warned the girls that they must go in, 
Nancy and Bob skimmed over the ice to the envy 
of less accomplished skaters. Nancy came back 
to the boathouse all in a glow, after promising to 
meet Bob the next afternoon on the river. 

There were Grace Montgomery and Cora, and 
Belle Macdonald, and the others of their clique, 
taking off their skates. Nancy felt so happy that 
she would have made friends, just then, with al- 
most anyone. 

She flung off her skates and smiled at the other 
girls. She smiled at Samuel when she asked him 
to sharpen them against the next afternoon, and 
tipped him for his trouble. 

But whereas the under gardener smiled in re- 
turn and praised her skating, the girls stared at 
her as though she were a complete stranger. 
Grace turned her back contemptuously. Cora 
scowled blackly. 

And when she was back in Number 30, West 
Side, making ready for supper, her roommate 


IT PROVES DISASTROUS 


i35 

came in noisily, tossed her skates on the floor, and 
burst out with: 

“ Well! you’re a nice girl, you are! ” 

“ What’s the matter now?” asked Nancy, with 
more courage than usual. 

“ I should think you’d ask! ” 

“ I do ask,” said Nancy. 

“Well, you’ve just about spoiled my — our — 
party.” 

“How?” 

“ You know well enough,” snapped Cora. 

“ I do not,” declared Nancy. “ I have done 
nothing.” 

“ Oh, no ! Just walking off with Bob Endress 
and keeping him all the afternoon. Why, Grace 
is his cousin — and she’ll never forgive you.” 

It was on the tip of Nancy’s tongue to say she 
didn’t care; but instead she remained silent. 

“ I had the hardest work to coax her to come 
to-night,” went on Cora. 

This was the evening marked for the spread in 
Number 30 . 

“ I do not see that I have done anything to you 
girls,” said Nancy, with some warmth. “ I hap- 
pened to know Bob Endress ” 

“ How did you come to know Bob? He never 
said anything about it,” snapped Cora. 

“Well, I can assure you we were acquainted.” 


1 36 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ It’s certainly very strange,” said the other 
girl, suspiciously. 

“ I don’t see that it is anybody’s business but 
our own,” Nancy Nelson returned, with growing 
confidence. “ And I did not mean to offend either 
you or Miss Montgomery.” 

“ It’s very strange.” 

“ Not at all.” 

“ Well, I don’t know how you will explain it 
to Grace.” 

“ I don’t have to,” said Nancy, and now she 
was getting angry. 

“ Let me tell you, Miss, you will have to,” cried 
Cora, more snappishly than ever. 

“ I do not see why.” 

“ Let me tell you Grace Montgomery is the 
most influential and popular girl in our class. 
You’ll find that out if you continue to offend her.” 

“ I don’t see how I have offended her; nor do I 
see how I can pacify her if she is angry with me,” 
returned Nancy, doggedly. 

“ You’d better let Bob Endress alone, then,” 
cried Cora. 

“Why! how meanly you talk,” said Nancy, 
fairly white now with anger. 

“Well! there’s something very strange about 
how you took him right away from us ” 

“ If you don’t stop talking like that,” Nancy 


IT PROVES DISASTROUS 


i37 

answered, her eyes blazing, “ I shall not speak to 
you at all.” 

“Well, you’ve got to explain to Grace, then.” 

“ I will explain nothing to her.” 

“ Then you mean to spoil our party to-night? ” 

“ No. It isn’t my party, that is evident. I’ll 
go into some other room while you are holding it, 
if that’s what you want.” 

Cora looked at her askance. Nancy had never 
shown any temper before since the term had 
opened. Cora did not really know whether her 
roommate would do as she said, or not. 

“ Oh, we’re not dying to have you in here. You 
can go to Number 38. You know both of the 
girls from there will be here.” 

“ That’s what I’ll do, then,” answered Nancy, 
firmly. 

“ I’ll tell Grace,” said Cora, rather uncertainly. 
“ Then she’ll be sure and come. Oh, she is mad.” 

“ I hope she will remain mad with me as long as 
we are both at Pinewood! ” cried Nancy, desper- 
ately, and then she ran out of the room to hide 
the tears of anger and disappointment which she 
could no longer keep back. 


CHAPTER XIV 


HEAPS OF TROUBLE 

Nancy wept as she had never wept since com- 
ing to Pinewood Hall. But she was weeping as 
much for rage as for sorrow. Cora’s insulting 
words, and her cruelty, had lashed Nancy’s indig- 
nation to the boiling point. 

She could spoil all their fun on this evening. 
She knew where all the goodies were hidden. 
Most of them were in her closet, and in Cora’s. 
And her money had paid for every scrap that had 
been smuggled in from the Clintondale caterer’s 
and from the delicatessen store and grocery. 

She could not only stop the girls from having 
the spread in Number 30; but she could stop their 
having it at all. 

However, the heat of her passion was soon over. 
She bathed her eyes and flushed face and went 
down to supper without seeing Cora again. 

She did not sit near the Montgomery clique at 
table, anyway; but she heard them talking and 
laughing during the meal, and afterward some of 
13s 


HEAPS OF TROUBLE 


i39 

them passed where Nancy sat and looked at her 
oddly. 

None of them spoke to her. All of a sudden 
they had dropped her again and she was just as 
friendless as she had been before Cora Rathmore 
suggested the secret supper. 

When she went back to Number 30, however, 
Cora followed her. 

“ Now, I want to know just what you mean to 
do, Miss?’ she said, standing inside the door and 
scowling at Nancy. 

“What about? ” 

“ About the supper to-night.” 

“You certainly don’t need me at the supper,” 
observed Nancy, quietly. 

“ I should hope not ! But we don’t propose to 
have you run to the teachers and give our secrets 
away.” 

Nancy started up from her chair and advanced 
a step toward her tormentor. She really had it in 
her mind to box Cora’s ears — and the black-eyed 
girl knew it. 

“ Don’t you dare touch me ! ” she cried, shrink- 
ing back. 

“ Then don’t you dare suggest that I’d be a 
telltale,” warned Nancy. “ I leave that to you.” 

“ Oh, you do ! ” 

Nancy was silent, and Cora calmed down. 


140 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“Then you’ll go out for the evening?” she 
asked, at last. 

“ Gladly,” said Nancy. 

“ Mabel and Hilary say you can stay in 38.” 

“ Very well.” 

“ And of course you are not going to be mean 
about your share of the goodies?” asked Cora, 
slily. 

Nancy wanted to say that it seemed to her all 
the goodies were hers. But she only tossed Cora 
the key of her closet. 

u I hope you’ll have a good time,” she said, in 
a low voice. u But if I were you, Cora, and had 
treated anybody as meanly as you have me, I could 
never have a good time.” 

“ Pooh ! ” replied Cora, insolently. Such con- 
siderations made no impression on her. She only 
thought that Nancy was “ too easy for anything,” 
and laughed and joked about her to Grace Mont- 
gomery. 

Nancy would not cry before her roommate. 
She spent the evening as usual in apparently close 
application to the lessons for the next day; scarcely 
a word was said in Number 30 until curfew at 
nine. The other girls kept entirely away from 
the room that evening. Going back and forth 
might have drawn the suspicion of Miss Maybrick 
to that particular dormitory. 


HEAPS OF TROUBLE 


141 

At bedtime the two girls occupying Number 30 
undressed and got into bed as usual. The electric 
lights went out on that floor. The corridors were 
lighted only by caged gas jets, turned low. In 
each room was a candle in an ample stick. The 
girls had to use these if they needed to move about 
in the night, and all the after-hour spreads were 
illuminated by candles, each girl participating 
bringing her own taper to the feast. 

The hour between nine and ten dragged by 
drearily enough. Especially was this so for Nancy. 
She lay wide awake, with swollen, feverish eyes, 
and waited for the ten o’clock gong. 

At that hour the lights on the upper floors were 
out and, a little later, Miss Maybrick’s soft foot- 
fall sounded in the corridor. Occasionally the 
teacher turned a knob and looked into a study. 
The draperies between studies and bedrooms had 
to be left open so that the teacher could cast the 
ray of her electric hand-lamp right in upon the 
pillows of the two beds. 

And if there was not the proper number of 
heads on those pillows, an investigation was sure 
to follow! 

Miss Maybrick was known to be a sound sleeper, 
however. It was pretty safe for the girls to have 
their “ orgies ” on the nights this particular in- 
structor was on duty. 


i 4 2 r A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Miss Maybrick went past and, in a moment, 
Cora slipped out of bed and to the door. In the 
moonlight Nancy saw her crouched beside the 
door, reach up and turn the knob, open the portal 
a little way, and listen. 

The rustle of the teacher’s skirts was lost in the 
distance. She had already been upon the upper 
floors; and now her inspection was over. The 
soft closing of her own door, which was right at 
the head of the stairway, came to the ears of the 
listening girls. 

Almost immediately there was a rustling and 
whispering in the corridor. Cora threw the door 
of Number 30 open. Somebody giggled. 

“ Come on ! ” whispered Cora, sharply. 

Nancy, feeling that it was all wrong and that 
no good would come of it, slid out of bed, sought 
her slippers with her bare toes, wriggled her feet 
into them, and seized her gray robe. 

She darted out of Number 30 before any of 
the visitors arrived, and went to the nearest bath- 
room. There she waited until she was pretty sure 
the twenty girls had gathered to enjoy their stolen 
fun. 

Number 38 was just across in the other short 
corridor. Nancy ran there, sobbing quietly to 
herself. Just before she opened the door some- 
body grabbed her arm. 


HEAPS OF TROUBLE 


143 


Oh! how frightened she was for the moment. 
She was sure a lurking teacher had found her out 
of her room. 

“ Hush! don’t be a dunce! It’s only me,” said 
a kind, if sharp, voice. 

“ Jennie Bruce ! ” 

“ Of course it is. Who did you think I was — 
your grandmother’s ghost?” giggled Jennie, 
pinching her. 

“ Oh, oh! ” panted Nancy. 

“ You’re scared to death. What’s the mat- 
ter?” 

14 1— I ” 

“You were going into Number 38?” 

“Yes,” admitted Nancy. 

“ Well, come into my room. It’s Number 40. 
I’m chummed with a girl who has gone to that 
party.” 

“You — you know about it, then?” stammered 
Nancy. 

“ I should say I did.” 

“ And your roommate was invited — and not 
you?” 

“ Grace and her crowd aren’t in love with me,” 
remarked Jennie. 

“Oh!” 

“And I reckon they are not overpoweringly 
fond of you?” suggested Jennie. 


144 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


Nancy could not speak then. Jennie put her 
arm over her shoulder. 

“ Come on into my bed, Nancy,” she said, 
“ Sally will wake us up when she comes back from 
the spread. I think Cora and that Montgomery 
girl have treated you just as meanly as they 
could.” 

Nancy still sobbed. Jennie opened the door of 
Number 40 and drew her inside. 

“ Don’t you let them see that you care,” com- 
manded Jennie. 

“ I — I don’t care a — about them,” sobbed 
Nancy. “ It’s — it’s because I haven’t a friend in 
the world.” 

“ Oh, don’t say that, honey,” urged the other 
girl, still holding Nancy in her arms after they 
had discarded their robes and crept between the 
sheets. 

“ It — it is so,” sobbed Nancy. 

“ You mean you haven’t made friends here at 
Pinewood? ” 

“ I haven’t made friends anywhere,” said 
Nancy. 

“ Why — why — Surely you have some folks — 
some relatives ?” 

Nancy’s naturally frank nature overpowered her 
caution here. Jennie Bruce was the first girl who 
had ever seemed to care about Nancy’s troubles. 


HEAPS OF TROUBLE 


i45 


She did not seem curious — only kind. The lonely 
girl did the very thing which her caution all the 
time had warned her would be disastrous. 

She opened her heart to Jennie Bruce. 

“ Do you know who I am?” she demanded of 
the surprised Jennie. 

“Why — what do you mean? Of course you 
are Nancy Nelson.” 

*“ I don’t even know if I have a right to that 
name.” 

“Mercy!” 

“ It’s the only name I know. It seems to be 
the only name anybody who knows about me, 
knows.” 

“ Then it’s yours.” 

“How do I know that?” queried Nancy, bit- 
terly. “ I’m just a little Miss Nobody.” 

“ Goodness me ! but that does sound romantic,” 
whispered Jennie. 

“ Romantic! ” cried Nancy, with scorn. “ It’s 
nothing of the kind. You’re as bad as Scorch.” 

“ As bad as who? ” 

“ Scorch O’Brien,” replied Nancy. 

“ Well, for goodness sake ! if that doesn’t sound 
interesting,” cried Jenny. “ Who is Scorch 
O’Brien? What a perfectly ridiculous name! 
Why ‘Scorch?’” 

“ He’s red-headed,” explained Nancy, doubtful 


1 46 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

now. She saw that she had got herself to a point 
where she must tell it all — every bit of her story 
— if she wished to keep Jennie’s friendship. 

“ Bully! Scorch O’Brien is fine,” laughed Jen- 
nie. “ Let’s hear all about you, Nancy Nelson. 
I bet you’ve got lots of the queerest friends, only 
you don’t know it. I — I’ve got nothing but 
brothers, and sisters, and cousins, and all that sort 
of trash. The Bruces hold most all the political 
offices in the town where I come from. You 
couldn’t throw a stone anywhere in Hollyburg 
without hitting one of the family. 

“ But just think ! You’ve got no folks to bother 
you. There are no teasing cousins. You haven’t 
got to ‘ be nice ’ to relatives that you fairly can’t 
help hating! 

“ Oh, I believe you’ve got it good, Nancy Nel- 
son; only you don’t know it! ” 

So, thus encouraged, and lying in Jennie’s warm 
embrace, Nancy whispered the full and particular 
account of the little, unknown girl who had been 
brought to Higbee School, far away in Malden, 
nearly ten years before. 

She told Jennie about Miss Prentice and about 
the long, tedious vacations with Miss Trigg, even 
down to the last one when she had helped save 
Bob Endress — then a perfect stranger to her — 
from the millpond. 


HEAPS OF TROUBLE 


147 


“ And he knew you right away on the ice to-day? 
I saw him ! Good for you ! He’s the most popu- 
lar boy in Clinton Academy,” declared Jennie 
with conviction. 

“ But I don’t care anything about that” said 
Nancy, honestly. “ I want the girls to like me. 
*And I know if they learn that I am just a no- 
body ” 

“ What nonsense ! You may be a great heiress. 
Why ! maybe you belong to royalty ” 

u In America ! ” ejaculated Nancy, the practical. 

“Well! they could have brought you over the 
ocean.” 

“ I haven’t heard of any of the royal families 
of Europe advertising for a lost princess,” Nancy 
said, in better humor now. “ And I know I don’t 
look like the Turks, or the Chinese, or Hindoos, 
or anything like that. I guess I’m an American, 
all right.” 

“ But you must have somebody very rich be- 
longing to you,” cried Jennie. 

“ I don’t know.” 

“ Then that Mr. Gordon must know more about 
you than he will tell.” 

“ I — I am almost tempted to believe so,” ad- 
mitted Nancy. 

“ I believe it! ” 

“ Scorch says so.” 


i 4 8 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ That boy is all right,” declared Jennie. “ I’d 
like to know him.” 

“ But I don’t see how Mr. Gordon is to be made 
to tell what he knows — if he does know more than 
he has admitted about me,” sighed Nancy. 

“ Neither do I — yet,” said Jennie. “ But we’ll 
think about it. Maybe that Scorch will find out 
something.” 

“ But — really — Mr. Gordon is very kind to me. 
See how much money he gives me.” 

“ And perhaps that is only a tithe of what he 
steals from you.” 

“ You’re as bad as Scorch,” declared Nancy. 

“Well — of course — maybe he is telling the 
truth, too,” said Jennie. “ And twenty dollars 
at one clip ! — Whew ! ” 

Nancy did not tell her that the twenty dollars 
had paid for the supper Grace and Cora and their 
friends were enjoying in Number 30 at that very 
moment. 

“ But I tell you what,” said Jennie, after a bit, 
and speaking reflectively. 

“Yes?” 

“ Just give Bob Endress the tip to say nothing 
to the other girls about how he first met you.” 
“Oh!” 

“ Don’t you see? If Cora and Grace find out 
•where you lived before you came to Pinewood 


HEAPS OF TROUBLE 149 

Hall, they’ll maybe learn all about you. And 
perhaps, that would be bad,” said Jennie, slowly. 

“Then you see it too?” asked Nancy, sadly. 
“ They’ll be very sure I am a nobody then.” 

“ It’s a shame how girls will talk,” admitted 
Jennie Bruce. “ Especially that kind of girls.” 

“ I wish I had you for a friend, Jennie,” said 
Nancy, in a whisper. 

“ Why ! you have ! ” cried the other. “ I’ve 
always wanted to know you better. But the girls 
think you are offish.” 

“ I don’t mean to be.” 

“ No, I see,” returned Jennie. “ But I under- 
stand you now. I wish you were in this room in- 
stead of Sally.” 

“ And if you only were in Number 30, instead 
of Cora,” spoke Nancy, out loud. 

And upon the very echo of these words, a clear 
voice demanded: 

“ And will you tell me, Miss Nelson, how it is 
that you are not in Number 30 — your proper dor- 
mitory — at this hour of the night? ” 

Both girls sat up in bed as though worked with 
the same spring. They could not speak. Ma- 
dame Schakael stood in the doorway. 


CHAPTER XV 


A GREAT DEAL HAPPENS 

The Madame’s doll-like figure has been men- 
tioned before in these chronicles. But to Nancy 
Nelson’s excited imagination the principal of 
Pinewood Hall at this juncture seemed to swell — 
expand — develop — and actually fill the doorway 
of Number 40, West Side, with her unexpected 
presence ! 

Nancy couldn’t speak for the moment. Even 
the lively Jennie Bruce’s gayety was stifled in her 
throat. 

“ I hope you are not stricken dumb, Nancy,” 
suggested the Madame, in the same low voice. 

“ Oh, Madame ! forgive me ! ” gasped the cul- 
prit at last, and slipped out of bed. 

“Where are your robe and slippers?” 

“ Right here, Madame,” answered the fright- 
ened freshman, getting into them in a hurry. 

“Well! stand there. Tell me why you are in 
the wrong room? ” 

“ Oh, it isn’t Jennie’s fault — ’deed it isn’t, Ma- 
dame!” gasped Nancy. 

150 


A GREAT DEAL HAPPENS 15 1 

“ I am not going to eat you, child,” said the 
principal of the school, with some exasperation. 
“ Having broken a rule, please stand up properly 
and answer my questions. 

“ How came you here, Nancy Nelson?” 

u Jennie — Jennie found me crying in the hall.” 

“What for?” 

“ I— I felt bad.” 

“You were ill?” 

“ Oh, no, ma’am,” Nancy hastened to say. 
“ I was not ill at all. Only I was — was lonely — 
and — and sorry — and ” 

“ Not altogether clear, Nancy,” said the Ma- 
dame; but her voice was lower and softer. 
“Tell me why you were crying in the hall?” 

But now Nancy had begun to get a grip upon 
herself. She realized the position she was in. 
If she obeyed Madame Schakael’s order she must 
“ tell on ” the girls then holding their orgie in 
Number 30. 

“Do you hear me, Nancy?” asked Madame 
Schakael, firmly. 

“ Yes, Madame,” whispered the girl. 

“Can’t you answer me?” 

“ No — no, Madame.” 

“Why not?” 

Nancy was silent for fully a minute, the Ma- 
dame waiting without a sign of irritation. 


15 2 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ That — that, too, I cannot answer,” said the 
miserable girl, at last. 

“ Do you realize what such a refusal means, 
Nancy? ” 

“ You — you will have to punish me.” 

“ Seriously.” 

“Yes, Madame; seriously.” 

“ And your record to date has been quite the 
best of any girl of your class.” 

Nancy locked her hands together and gazed at 
the principal. But she could say nothing. 

“You say Jennie Bruce is not to blame?” 
asked Madame Schakael, after another minute 
of silence. 

“ Oh, no, Madame ! ” 

“ Oh, dear me! ” cried the other girl. “ You 
just don’t understand, Madame ” 

Nancy made a pleading gesture to stop her 
newly-made friend. Madame held up her hand, 
too. 

“ I believe what Nancy Nelson says, Miss 
Bruce,” she observed, gravely. “ You shall not 
be punished.” 

“ I don’t care for that ! ” cried the impulsive 
Jennie. “ But Nancy ought not to be punished, 
either.” 

“ Will you let me be the judge of that, Jen- 
nie?” asked the Madame, softly. 


A GREAT DEAL HAPPENS 


153 


Jennie was abashed. 

“ Nancy is out of her room out of hours. That 
is a fault — a serious fault. You both know 
that? ” 

“ Yes, Madame,” said the stiff-lipped Nancy, 
while Jennie began to sob. 

“ I notice that Jennie’s roommate is not here. 
When she returns, Nancy, you may go back to 
your own room. And I shall deal out the same 
sort of punishment to Sally that I do to you, 
Nancy. 

u And that is,” pursued Madame Schakael, 
slowly, “ that you will be denied recreation, save 
that which is a part of the school curriculum, un- 
til the Christmas recess.” 

Nancy said nothing. But she fully understood 
what it meant. No outdoor runs alone, no skat- 
ing, nothing save the exercises prescribed by the 
physical instructor. 

“ You may wait for Sally’s return. And you 
are both forbidden to speak of this visit,” the prin- 
cipal said, and withdrew from the room as softly 
as she had entered it. 

“ Oh, dear me ! ” gasped Nancy, “ she will 
catch them all in Number 30.” 

“ And serve ’em right,” said Jennie. 

They waited, expecting to see Jennie’s room- 
mate coming back in a hurry. But there was no 


154 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

disturbance. The clock at the foot of the main 
staircases had long since struck eleven. Now it 
tolled midnight. 

Soon there were creaking of doors, faint rus- 
tlings in the corridors, giggling half-suppressed, 
and then the door of Number 40 opened again 
softly. 

“ Oh, gee! ” exclaimed Sally. “ Is she here?” 

“ Yes, she is,” replied Jenny, tartly. “ What 
have you got to say against it? ” 

“ Oh, you needn’t be so short, Jennie Bruce,” 
said Sally. 

She slipped out of her wrapper and into her 
bed. Nancy got up, kissed Jennie warmly, and 
left the room silently. When she got back to 
Number 30 Cora was alone. All traces of the 
spread were hidden. 

Cora said never a word; neither did Nancy. 
But she wondered much. Madame Schakael, she 
believed, had not hunted out the mystery of her 
being with Jennie Bruce. Would she and Sally be 
the only ones punished for this affair? 

Morning came and with it the usual assembly 
in the hall for prayers after breakfast. From 
the platform Madame Schakael read, without a 
word of explanation, the names of every girl who 
had attended Cora’s spread — save Cora herself — 
and ordered that they be deprived of recreation, 


A GREAT DEAL HAPPENS 155 

as had Nancy, “ for being out of their dormitories 
after hours.” The blow fell like a thunderclap 
upon the culprits. 

When they filed out of the hall to go to first 
recitation not one of the girls who had been at 
Number 30 the night before but scowled deadly 
hatred at poor Nancy. 

It would have been useless for Nancy to 
point out that she, too, had received the same 
punishment. Circumstances were against the 
girl who had practically been turned out of her 
own room while the party was having a glorious 
time eating salad, macaroons, ice cream, and 
various other indigestible combinations of 
“ sweeties.” 

Cora Rathmore had escaped. How? Her 
mates did not stop to investigate that mystery. 

If Cora could have explained she did not set 
about it. Instead, in first recitation, where she sat 
behind Nancy, she poked her in the back with a 
needle-like fore-finger and hissed: 

“ You’re a nice one; aren’t you? ” 

Nancy merely gave her a look, but made no 
reply. 

“ Don’t play the innocent. We all know that 
you went to the Madame and so got square with 
us.” 

“I — did — not!” declared Nancy, sternly. 


1 56 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

‘•Miss Nelson!” exclaimed Miss Maybrick, 
suddenly. 

Nancy whirled around, “ eyes front.” 

“ Demerit — talking in class,” said the teacher. 

That was the first time such a thing had hap- 
pened to Nancy. It did seem as though every- 
thing bad was tumbling on top of her at once. 
She would not look around again when Cora 
poked her, but kept at her books — or appeared 
to! 

What little joy she had had in school heretofore 
was all gone now. Lessons dragged; she thought 
the instructors all looked at her suspiciously. 

Just the recreation room in the basement be- 
tween lessons, or a demure walk with Miss Etch- 
ing, the physical instructor, over the snowy lawns 
and wood paths about Pinewood. Extra gym. 
work was denied her, and when the other girls 
ran with their skates to the river after release from 
studies, she could only go to Number 30 and 
mope. 

Nancy could not see Bob Endress again. That 
was something beside a mere provocation of spirit. 
The girl felt that it was serious. 

As Jennie had suggested, she wished to warn 
Bob to say nothing about where he had met her 
before. Of course, Grace Montgomery could 
not see the boy, either. But Cora was free to 


A GREAT DEAL HAPPENS 157 

pump Bob, and Nancy was sure her roommate 
would worm out of him the whole story of how 
he had first met Nancy. 

“ He’s been looking for you,” whispered Jen- 
nie to Nancy at supper, the first night following 
the imposition of the punishment. “ I saw him 
skating with Corinne and some of the other big 
girls. I don’t know whether he saw Cora, or 
not.” 

“Oh, dear, Jennie!” cried Nancy. “I wish 
you would warn him.” 

“I?” exclaimed the other. “I never was in- 
troduced to him.” 

“Oh!” 

“ But that wouldn’t make any difference,” de- 
clared the fun-loving girl, with a smile. “ I’m 
not afraid of boys; they don’t bite.” 

“ He’s a real nice boy, I believe,” said Nancy. 

“ So they all say.” 

“ And he’d understand, I am sure,” continued 
Nancy. “ If he was only warned what harm his 
telling might do me ” 

“ Leave it to me ! ” cried Jennie. “ I’ll skate 
with him to-morrow — if he’s on the ice.” 

Nancy’s life in the school was made far more 
miserable now by Cora Rathmore and her friends. 
All these girls, who had enjoyed the spread bought 
with Nancy’s money, but who had been punished 


1 5 8 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

by the principal, were determined to look upon 
Nancy as guilty of “ telling on them.” 

Nor did they give her any chance to answer the 
charge. Cora would not even speak to her in 
their room. If any of the other girls came in, 
Cora said: 

“ Oh, come over to your room. We can’t 
talk here, where there is a telltale around.” 

This was said at Nancy; but none of them ac- 
tually addressed her. Besides, Cora began to 
hint that she knew something against Nancy that 
she was keeping in reserve. 

“ Oh, yes ! she holds her head up awful proud,” 
Cora observed in Nancy’s hearing. “ But you just 
wait ! ” 

“Wait for what, Cora?” asked one of the 
girls. 

“ Wait till I get a letter. I’ll know all about 
Miss Telltale soon.” 

And after that Nancy’s worst fears were real- 
ized by the news that Jennie Bruce brought her. 
Jennie had managed to see and have a private in- 
terview with Bob Endress. 

“ And of course, he’s managed to do it,” grum- 
bled Jennie. 

“ Done what? Oh ! done what? ” cried Nancy, 
clasping her hands. 

“ Well, Cora wormed something out of him. 


A GREAT DEAL HAPPENS 159 

He told her how you were the girl who saved him 
from drowning last summer.” 

“ Then it’ll all come out ! ” groaned Nancy. 

“ That’s according. Cora knows where you 
lived before you came to Pinewood to school.” 

“ And she’ll write to Malden. I believe she 
has done so.” 

“ But perhaps whoever she knows there won’t 
know you.” 

“ But they’ll learn about Higbee School, and 
then they can trace me to it. I know if anybody 
wrote to Miss Prentice she’d tell all about me. 
She’d think it her duty.” 

“ Mean old thing! ” declared Jennie. 

“ Oh, Jennie ! it’s going to be awful hard,” said 
poor Nancy. “ You’d better not be too friendly 
with me. The girls are all bound to look down 
on me.” 

“ Don’t be so foolish ! Of course they won’t.” 

But Nancy shook her head. She had been all 
through the same trouble so many times before. 
With every incoming class of new girls at Higbee 
School it had been the same. She had been “ the 
girl of mystery.” 

“ If you could only make that old lawyer tell 
the truth about you, Nance! ” exclaimed Jennie. 

“ But perhaps he is telling the truth.” 

“ Not much, he isn’t.” 


160 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“Why, you’re as bad as Scorch O’Brien,” de- 
clared Nancy, with half a smile. 

“ That boy’s got some brains, all right,” ob- 
served Jennie, quickly. “ It does not sound rea- 
sonable that, during all these years, Mr. Gordon 
would not have probed into the matter and learned 
something about your real antecedents.” 

Nancy shook her head, slowly. “ It may all 
be true. Maybe it is just kind-heartedness that 
has kept him acting as intermediary between the 
persons who furnish money for my education, and 
myself.” 

“And why does he tip you so generously? ” 

“ Oh— er— Well, I don’t know.” 

“ Is that out of his own pocket, do you think? ” 
asked the shrewd Jennie. 

“ Well ” 

“ Does this ‘ Old Gordon,’ as your friend 
Scorch calls him, really seem like a man given to 
outbursts of charity, Nance?” 

“ Why — why, I never saw him but once,” re- 
plied Nancy. 

“ But did he impress you as being of a philan- 
thropic nature?” urged her friend. 

“ No-oo.” 

“ I thought not,” observed Jennie. “ Just be- 
cause Scorch reminded him of your existence 
wasn’t likely to make him send you money. I bet 


A GREAT DEAL HAPPENS 161 


he handles plenty more belonging to you that you 
never see.” 

“ But see to what an expensive school he has 
sent me!” cried Nancy. 

“ Maybe he was obliged to do so. Perhaps 
he only does just what he is told to do, after all. 
There may be somebody behind Mr. Gordon, 
who is watching both him and you.” 

“My goodness! You make it all more mys- 
terious than it was before,” sighed Nancy. “ Just 
the same, if these girls learn all about me they’ll 
spread it around that I’m just a foundling, and 
that nobody knows anything about me. It is going 
to be dreadfully hard.” 

“ Now, you pluck up your spirit, Nance Nel- 
son!” commanded Jennie Bruce. “Don’t be so 
milk-and-watery. You’re just as good as they 
are. 

“ I don’t know. At least, my folks may not 
have been as good as their folks.” 

“ Well, I’d never let ’em guess it/’ cried Jennie. 
“ You’re scared before you are hurt, Nance; that’s 
what is the matter with you.” 


CHAPTER XVI 


IT COMES TO A HEAD 

Jennie Bruce was just as full of good humor 
as she could be. She may have lacked reverence 
for teachers, precedent, the dignity of the seniors, 
and honored custom; but nobody with a normal 
mind could really be angry with her. 

Her deportment marks were dreadfully low; 
but she was quick at her studies and was really too 
kind-hearted to mean to bother the teachers. 

She managed to get in and out of a dozen 
scrapes a day. Yet the rollicking good-nature of 
the girl, and her frank honesty did much to save 
her from serious punishment. 

Jennie went on her care-free way, assured in her 
own mind that certain of the rules of Pinewood 
Hall were only made to be broken. If a thought 
came to her in class, or a desire to communicate 
with another scholar, she could no more resist the 
temptation than she could fly. 

“ Miss Bruce ! half an hour this afternoon on 
grammar rules for talking!” 

162 


IT COMES TO A HEAD 163 

“ Oh, Miss Maybrick! I’m so sorry. I didn’t 
think.” 

“ Learn to think, then.” 

“ Jennie, if you must make such faces, please 
do so out of the view of your classmates, I beg.” 
This from gentle Miss Meader. 

“ I — I was just trying how it felt to be stran- 
gled with a cord. It says here the Thuggee did 
it in India as a religious practice.” 

“That’s enough, Jennie!” as a giggle arose 
from the roomful of girls. “ Your excuses are 
worse than your sins.” 

And her thirst for knowledge! Of course, it 
was a desire for information that was by no possi- 
bility of any value to either herself or the class. 

“ Is this sentence good English, Miss Halli- 
day? ” asked Jennie, after scribbling industriously 
for some minutes, and then reading from her 
paper: “ ‘A girl was criticised by her teacher for 
the use of the word “ that,” but it was proved 
that that “ that ” that that girl used was that 
“ that ” that that girl should have used.’ Is that 
right? ” 

“ That is perfectly correct, Jennie,” said the 
English teacher, grimly, when the class had come 
to order, “but you are altogether wrong. You 
may show me that sentence written plainly forty 
times when you come to the class to-morrow.” 


1 64 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“Zowie! ” murmured Jennie in Nancy’s ear as 
they were excused. “ I bet she thought that 
hurt” 

But the ingenious Jennie had recourse to a 
typewriter in one of the offices which the girls 
could use if they wished. She put in forty slips of 
tissue paper, with carbon sheets between each two, 
and wrote the troublesome sentence on all forty 
slips at once! 

“ You know very well this was not what I meant 
when I gave you the task, Jennie,” commented 
Miss Halliday, yet having hard work not to smile. 

“You particularly said to write it plainly,” re- 
turned the demure Jennie. “ And what could be 
plainer than typewriting?” 

These jokes, and their like, made her beloved 
by a certain number of the girls, amused the 
others, and sometimes bothered her teachers a 
good deal. 

But there was not a girl in all Pinewood Hall 
who would have been of such help to Nancy Nel- 
son at this juncture as Jennie Bruce. 

When Jennie was out of the building in recrea- 
tion time, Nancy either kept close in Number 30, 
or crept away to some empty office and conned 
her lesson books industriously. 

When Jennie was at hand Nancy began to see 
that she need fear little trouble from the Mont- 


IT COMES TO A HEAD 165 

gomery clique. They were all afraid of Jennie’s 
sharp tongue. And after Cora had tried to be 
nasty to Nancy before a crowd a couple of times, 
and Jennie had turned the laugh against her, 
Nancy’s enemies learned better. 

But one noon Grace Montgomery received a 
letter which, after reading, she passed around 
among her particular friends. It was eagerly 
read, especially by Cora Rathmore. 

That young lady immediately walked over to 
Nancy, who was sitting alone reading, and she 
shook the letter in the surprised girl’s face. 

“ Now I’ve got you, Miss! ” she fairly hissed. 

Nancy looked up, startled, but could not speak. 

“ Now we know where you came from, and 
what and who you are, Nancy Nelson! ” pursued 
Cora. “ A girl like you — a nobody — a foundling 
— Oh ! I’ll see if I have got to associate with such 
scum! ” 

She wheeled sharply away, and had Nancy re- 
covered her powers of speech she would have had 
no time to reply to this tirade. 

But Nancy could not have spoken just then to 
save her life ! The blow had fallen at last. All 
she had feared since coming to Pinewood Hall 
was now about to be realized. 

In some way Grace Montgomery had learned 
the particulars of her early life at Higbee School, 


1 66 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


though Cora might not have found it out, and 
Grace had put the letter into the hands of Nancy’s 
roommate. 

What Cora would first do poor Nancy did not 
not know. There would be some terrible “ blow- 
up ” the girl was sure. The story would spread 
all over the school. All the girls must know that 
she was a mere nobody, apparently dependent 
upon charity for her education and even for her 
food. 

Oh! if she could only escape from it all — run 
away from Pinewood — go somewhere so far, or 
so hidden, that none of these proud girls coming 
from rich families could ever find and taunt her 
with her own miserable story. 

Yes, Nancy thought earnestly that afternoon of 
running away. Any existence, it seemed to her 
then, would be better than suffering the unkind 
looks and the doubtful whispers of her school 
companions. 

Nancy was not afraid of ordinary things. The 
possibility of hunger and cold did not daunt her. 
She knew that, if she left the school secretly, and 
ran away and found a place to work, she might 
often be in need. But if she could only go where 
people would not ask questions ! 

She was quite as old as Scorch O’Brien, she 
thought. And see how independent that flame- 


IT COMES TO A HEAD 167 

haired youngster was! Nancy knew she could 
take care of herself alone in the city as well as 
Scorch. She had enough money left to get her to 
Cincinnati, and something over. 

How she got through her lessons after dinner 
she never knew; but she did, somehow. Then she 
crept up to her dormitory and to her delight found 
it empty. She gathered together a few of her 
simplest possessions and crammed them into her 
handbag. She took only those things that would 
not be at once missed. She touched nothing on 
her bureau. 

When she had locked the bag she opened the 
window and peered out. It was already growing 
dark; but far away, on the frozen river, she could 
hear the ring of skates and the silvery shouts of 
laughter from the girls. 

Nobody stirred in the pinewood, nor in the 
shrubbery closer to the Hall. Nancy waited for 
a minute to see if she was observed, and then she 
.tossed the bag into the middle of a clump of 
bushes not far from her window. 

She believed nobody had seen her. She closed 
the sash and picked up her cap and coat. She 
rolled these into as small and compact a bundle as 
possible and then left the room quietly. 

Corinne Pevay was coming through the cor- 
ridor. 


1 68 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“ Hullo, Nancy Nelson! ” she said, cheerfully, 
putting her hand upon the younger girl’s shoulder. 
“ What did you want to be such a perfect little 
brick for?” 

“I — I don’t know what you mean?” quoth 
Nancy, shrinking under the senior’s touch. 

“ Why, if you’d told Madame Schakael all 
!about it the other night when she caught you in 
Number 40, do you suppose she would have pun- 
ished you so harshly? ” 

“ I — I couldn’t tell on them,” murmured 
Nancy, trying to hide her bundle. 

“ No. But what good did it do to try and 
save girls like Montgomery? They blame you, 
just the same.” 

Nancy nodded, but said nothing. 

“ But I know that you didn’t tell on them; and 
so does Jennie Bruce. Madame Schakael learned 
the names of the culprits by going from door to 
door and finding out who were absent from their 
rooms. She did not have to go to Number 30 
at all. And you got no thanks for trying to 
shield them.” 

Nancy continued silent. 

“ And one of them told me” said Corinne, 
pointedly, “ that you paid for all those goodies 
they gorged themselves on; yet they froze you 
out of the party. Is that right? ” 


IT COMES TO A HEAD 169 

“ Oh, I — I’d rather not say, Miss Pevay,” stam- 
mered Nancy. 

“Humph! Well, you’re a funny kid,” said 
the senior, leaving her. “ You’ll never get along 
in this girls’ menagerie if you let ’em walk all over 
you.” 

Nancy had been afraid that Corinne would go 
to the lower floor with her. But when the bigger 
girl left her, she slipped down the stairs like a 
streak and ran for the rear door of the West Side. 

She saw nobody. The lower corridors seemed 
empty. She reached the unlocked door and had 
her hand upon the knob. Indeed, she turned the 
knob and pulled the door toward her. 

The cold evening air blew in upon her face. It 
was the Breath of the Wide World — that world 
that lay before her if she left the shelter of Pine- 
wood Hall and the bitterness of her life here. 

And then, for the first time, a thought struck 
her. She had been forbidden to leave the build- 
ing, save at stated times with the physical instruc- 
tor, until the Christmas holidays, which were three 
weeks away. 

Madame Schakael had bound her, on her honor, 
to remain a prisoner in the Hall until the ban of 
displeasure should be lifted. She had tacitly 
promised to obey, and therefore the Madame had 
set no spy upon Nancy’s footsteps. There was 


i 7 o A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

no watching of the girls suffering under punish- 
ment. That was not the system of Pinewood 
Hall and its mistress. 

How could Nancy break her word to Madame 
Schakael? Never had the Madame spoken other- 
wise than kindly to her. Even when she meted 
out punishment to her, Nancy knew that the pun- 
ishment was just. The Madame could have done 
no less. 

The principal had not even urged Nancy to re- 
port her schoolmates on the night of the party at 
Number 30, West Side. She had accepted her 
statement, as far as it went, as perfectly honest, 
too. She had not punished Jennie Bruce. 

“ Why, I can't run away and make Madame 
Schakael trouble!” gasped Nancy, closing the 
door again softly and crouching there in the dark 
hallway. “ Mr. Gordon might make her trouble. 
Besides — I’ve promised.” 

The girl was much shaken by her fear of what 
cruelty Cora Rathmore and Grace Montgomery 
would mete out to her. Yet she could not play 
what seemed to her mind a “ mean trick ” upon 
the doll-like principal who had been so kind to her. 

“Oh, dear me! I can’t go — I can’t go!” 
moaned Nancy Nelson. “ It wouldn’t be right. 
Madame Schakael said I wasn’t to go out — — ” 

And then she remembered the bag she had* 


IT COMES TO A HEAD 


171 

tossed out of the window. She must have that 
bag back, if she wasn’t going away. If it re- 
mained there over night perhaps Mr. Pease, or 
Samuel, would find it. 

And then the story would all come out, and her 
position in the school would be worse! 

But Nancy knew that she had no right to leave 
the building at this particular time. That was 
the plain understanding, that recreation hours 
should be spent within the Hall, unless Miss Etch- 
ing invited her to join a walking party. 

The physical instructor was now down on the 
ice with the girls. Nancy might have asked one 
of the other teachers for permission to step out 
for just a minute; but that would entail much 
explanation. 

The brush clump into which she had thrown her 
bag was around the farther corner of the wing. 
And just then she heard laughing and talking as 
the first group from the river approached the 
Hall. 

Ah! there was Jennie. Nancy identified her 
jolly laugh and chatter immediately. She could 
trust Jennie. Jennie would slip around the house 
and bring in the fatal bag secretly, and keep still 
about it. 

So Nancy kept back in the dark hall and let the 
troop of laughing girls pass her without saying a 


172 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

word. Jennie came last and Nancy seized her 
arm. 

“ Goodness to gracious and eight hands 
around!” gasped Jennie. “How you startled 
me. Is it you, Nancy?” 

“Hush! Yes.” 

“Well, what’s the matter? Whose old cat is 
dead now?” demanded Jennie, in an equally low 
voice. 

“ I — I threw my bag out of the window, Jennie. 
Will you get it? ” whispered the excited girl. 
“Your bag?” 

“Yes, yes!” 

“ What under the sun did you do it for? ” 

“ I — I can’t tell you here,” whispered Nancy. 
“What have you got there?” demanded Jen- 
nie, suddenly, pulling at the bundle under the 
other girl’s arm. 

“ My— my coat.” 

“And your hat?” 

“ Ye— yes.” 

“Oh, you little chump! You are starting to 
run away ! ” 

“ No, I’m not.” 

“ But you thought of it? ” 

“ Oh, Jennie! I don’t see how I can stay here. 
Cora and Grace know everything.” 

“I know it — nasty cats! But I’d face ’em. 


IT COMES TO A HEAD 


i73 


There’s nothing to be ashamed of,” declared Jen- 
nie. But she said it a little weakly. She knew 
that many of the girls would be just foolish enough 
to follow the lead of the Montgomery girl and 
Cora Rathmore. 

“ I — I’ve got to face ’em, I suppose,” mur- 
mured Nancy. “ I just thought that I couldn’t 
run away.” 

“ Huh! why not? ” asked her friend, curiously. 

“ Because Madame Schakael put me on my 
honor not to leave the Hall in recreation hours 
without permission.” 

“Oh! goodness!” gasped Jennie. Then she 
burst out laughing, rocking herself to and fro, 
doubled up in the darkness of the hallway. 

“What a delightful kid you are, Nance! ” she 
cried, at last. “ And you threw your handbag, 
all packed, out of the window? ” 

“ Yes.” 

“ Well, I’ll go get it. But you certainly will 
be the death of me!” cried Jennie, and opened 
the door again. 

“Oh! I’ll thank you so much,” whispered 
Nancy. 

“ Go on upstairs and put that coat and hat 
away,” ordered Jennie, with sudden gruffness. 
“ You’re no more fit to roam this wild desert of 
boarding-school life alone than a baby in long 


174 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

clothes ! Run, now ! ” and Jennie darted out of 
the door. 

But it was easier to say than to do ! When 
Nancy stole back into the main hall there were 
a dozen girls, at least, gathered there waiting 
for the supper gong. And among them were 
some of those who had, all the time, treated Nancy 
with the least consideration. 

Nancy dropped her gaze, so as not to see their 
unpleasant looks, and stole toward the stairway 
with her bundle. But suddenly Cora’s sharp voice 
halted her. She had not seen Cora at first. 

“ Yes! there she goes up to our room. That’s 
the girl I have to room with. But I’m going to 
tell Madame Schakael right now that I sha’n’t do 
so any longer.” 

Nancy’s head came up and she flushed and 
paled. The lash of Cora’s words roused her 
temper as it had been roused once before. Yet 
all she said in reply to the cruel speech was: 

“ Why can’t you let me alone, Cora Rath- 
more? ” 

“I’ll let you alone!” repeated Cora, with a 
shrill laugh. “ I guess I will. And every other 
nice girl will let you alone, Miss Nelson. Don’t 
be afraid that you’ll be worried by friends here. 
We all know what you are now.” 

Nancy had reached the foot of the stairs and 


IT COMES TO A HEAD 


175 


was starting up. She whirled suddenly to face 
her tormentor. The coat and cap fell from her 
grasp. She clenched her hands tightly and cried: 

“ Then what am I, Cora? What have I done 
that makes me so bad in your eyes? What have 
you got against me? ” 

“You’re a nobody. You came from a charity 
school. The woman who is principal doesn’t know 
where you came from. Your parents may be in 
jail for all anybody knows,” returned Cora. 

“ You haven’t any people, and you stayed in 
that Higbee School at Malden all the year round 
— vacations and all. The girls didn’t like you 
there any more than they do here. 

“Ha! Miss Nobody from No-place-at-all ! 
that’s what you are! ” sneered Nancy’s roommate. 
“ How do you expect the nice girls here at Pine- 
wood Hall will want to associate with you? 

“ And let me tell you, Miss, that / refuse to 
room with you another day. I shall tell Madame 
Schakael so right now! ” concluded Cora, her face 
very red and her black eyes flashing angrily. 


CHAPTER XVII 


A RIFT IN THE CLOUDS 

None of the other girls had taken part in this 
discussion; but they all chanced to be members of 
the party that had partaken of the famous spread 
in Number 30 when Nancy’s money paid for the 
goodies out of the enjoyment of which she had 
been crowded. 

They were all, save Cora, paying the price, 
like Nancy, of being found out of their rooms 
after curfew by the principal of Pinewood Hall. 
All had suffered alike. Cora had been the only 
one to escape. 

As it chanced, Cora had not been out of her 
room. The girls were not punished for eating ice 
cream and macaroons in secret, and none of them 
had been questioned about the incident save Nancy 
herself. 

They had all, however, urged by Cora and 
Grace Montgomery, been sure that Nancy had 
“ got even ” by reporting them to the teachers. 
Maybe, if Cora had not so urged this — had not 
been so confident of Nancy’s crime, in fact — the 

176 


A RIFT IN THE CLOUDS 


177 


other girls might have stopped to think that she 
was being punished equally with themselves, and 
that only Cora had escaped. 

Just the same, some of them might on this 
evening have taken Nancy’s part had not Cora 
Rathmore made so much of the report upon 
Nancy’s character that Grace Montgomery had 
received from a friend in Malden. 

Nobody had seen the letter (which came under 
cover for Grace from her sister at home, and was 
therefore not examined by Madame Schakael) 
save Grace herself and Cora. The latter had 
flown into a passion immediately, and had de- 
clared that she would no longer remain in the 
same room with a “ charity foundling.” 

Without stopping to think, these other girls 
were carried away by Cora’s eloquence. When 
Nancy turned to face them from the lower stair 
of the flight leading up to the West Side dormi- 
tories, she was like a sheep cornered by a pack of 
dogs. 

The shrill voice of the angry Cora carried much 
farther than she had intended, however. Sud- 
denly, at the top of the flight, appeared Corinne 
Pevay, captain of the West Side. 

“ What is the trouble, mes enfants? ” she de- 
manded. “ Why all the outburst of variegated 
sounds, Cora? Is it a convention of the Fresh- 


i 7 8 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

man Calliope Society; or merely a discussion of 
the question: Votes for Women?” 

Cora had become silent instantly. Nancy was 
winking back her tears, and would not turn around. 
The other girls did not feel called upon to speak. 

“ * Silence was her answer; Low she bowed her 
head ! ’ ” chanted Corinne, in a sing-song tone. 
“ It sounded like a washerwomen’s convention, 
and now it has suddenly changed to a Quaker meet- 
ing. Come! what’s the trouble?” and she spoke 
more sharply as she began to descend the stairs. 

“None of your business, Miss!” snapped the 
black-eyed girl, made even angrier at this inter- 
ruption. 

“ Wrong Cora — wrong. It is my business. 
Somebody will call me to account for it if you 
West Side infants raise ructions in the main hall. 
You know that. So, out with the difficulty.” 

Cora still remained scornfully silent. 

“ It is about Nancy, here, again, I suppose,” 
said Corinne, finally reaching Nancy’s side, and 
resting one hand lightly on the latter’s shoulders. 
“You girls seem unable* to annoy anybody else 
but Nancy Nelson. And if I were she ” — she was 
coolly looking around the group and soon identi- 
fied them as the party that had been punished with 
Nancy over Number 30’s spread, — “ I never 
would stand it. 


A RIFT IN THE CLOUDS 


179 


“ She is too easy. That is what is the matter 
with her. When Madame Schakael found her in 
Jennie’s room that night she ought to have told 
just how she had been crowded out of her own 
room — and after paying for all the goodies you 
girls stuffed yourselves with, too ! 

“ Why, I’d be ashamed! She took her punish- 
ment and never said a word. Jennie can prove 
that . And all you little fools have laid your 
punishment to her. And after eating her 
spread ” 

“ That isn’t so ! ” snapped Cora, in a rage. 

“What isn’t so?” 

“ She knows she’s going to be paid back 
for what she spent on the supper,” declared 
Cora. 

“Good! I hope she will be paid back. But you 
can’t pay her back for the mean way you have 
treated her,” declared the senior, with some 
warmth. 

“ I don’t want to ! I don’t want to ! ” almost 
screamed Cora. “ Do you think I am going to 
have anything to do with a girl who doesn’t even 
know who she is?” 

“What do you mean, Cora?” asked Corinne, 
quickly. 

“ That girl,” cried Cora, pointing a quivering 
finger at the silent Nancy, “ was just found by 


i8o A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


somebody when she was a baby and was sent to a 
charity school — the Higbee Endowment School in 
Malden, it’s called. 

“ She’s a foundling. Her parents deserted her 
— or they were sent to jail — and other people sent 
this girl to school. She knows it’s so ! She daren’t 
say it isn’t ! ” continued the enraged Cora. 

“ She’s just a little Miss Nobody. If such 
girls as she, without family or friends, are going 
to come to Pinewood Hall, I am sure my mother 
won’t want me to stay here. And one thing I am 
very sure of,” pursued Cora. “ I will not re- 
main in Number 30 with this — this nameless girl 
that no one knows anything about.” 

“ Quite so, Miss Rathmore,” observed a quiet 
voice behind the excited Cora. “ What you say 
is emphatic, at least; and it really seems to be in 
earnest. Therefore, it shall have my respectful 
consideration.” 

A horrified silence fell upon the group of girls 
at the foot of the stairs. 

“ Miss Pevay,” said the Madame, calmly, 
“ bring Nancy Nelson and Cora Rathmore to my 
office at once. What is that on the floor? ” 

The little lady pointed to Nancy’s coat and 
cap. Nancy, with dry lips, told her. 

“ Have you been out without permission at this 
hour, Nancy? ” asked the Madame. 


A RIFT IN THE CLOUDS 181 

“ No, Madame.” 

“Bring the coat and cap. At once!” com- 
manded the Madame, and led the way into her 
own suite of offices. 

Like three prisoners bound for the stake, the 
three girls followed. Even Corinne felt that she 
had done wrong in allowing this squabble to con- 
tinue in the public hall. 

The other girls did not even dare whisper at 
first after the Madame and the three girls were 
behind the closed door of the Madame’s ante- 
room. It was seldom that the principal of Pine- 
wood Hall took the punishment, or interrogation, 
of offenders into her own hands. When she did 
it was a solemn moment for all concerned. 

And the girls gathered at the bottom of the 
West Side stairway felt this solemnity. They 
whispered together fearfully until suddenly Jennie 
Bruce burst in from outdoors. 

“Hullo, girls! what’s gone wrong?”. she de- 
manded, swinging a small bag in her hand. 

“ You may well say 1 What’s gone wrong? * ” 
declared Judy Craig, Belle Macdonald’s chum. 
“ The Madame caught poor Cora in an awful 
stew ” 

“Huh!” grunted Jennie. “Only Cora? 
Well ! she can stand it, I guess.” 

“ Well, I don’t know but she’s right,” wheezed 


1 82 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


Belle, who was also of the party. “ They ought 
not to let such girls into a school like Pinewood 
Hall.” 

“Hul-/o/” exclaimed Jennie, suddenly inter- 
ested. “ Who’s been treading on your tootsies, 
Belle?” 

“ Why, it’s that Nelson girl,” snapped Judy. 

“ And what’s Nancy been doing? ” 

“Well, it’s what she is,” exclaimed another, 
eagerly. “You are pretty thick with her, Jen. 
Do you know who she is?” 

Jennie nodded. 

“You don’t!” 

“ I know just as much about her as she knows 
about herself,” declared Jennie, with gravity. 

“ And that’s just nothing,” cried Judy, with a 
little laugh. “ That’s what Cora says.” 

“And who told Cora?” asked Jennie. 

“Grace. And Grace knows!” 

“ And who told Chicken-Little-Ducky-Lucky- 
Goosy-Poosy-Montgomery that the sky had 
fallen?” demanded the sarcastic Jennie. 

“ Did you know that Nancy Nelson came here 
from a charity school, and that she has no folks? ” 
asked Belle Macdonald, with considerable bit- 
terness. 

“ Yes,” said Jennie, nodding. 

“Well! what do you suppose your mother 


A RIFT IN THE CLOUDS 183 

would say if she knew you were familiar with such 
a girl? ” 

Jennie suddenly became grave. “ She’d say,” 
declared the fun-loving girl, her voice shaking a 
little, “she’d say: ‘That’s a good girl, Jennie. 
She’s an orphan — be kind to her.’ ” 

“Oh, rats!” cried Judy. “She doesn’t even 
know she’s an orphan. Cora says she believes 
Nancy’s parents are in jail.” 

“ Maybe Cora has a wider acquaintance among 
jails than the rest of us,” said Jennie airily, pre- 
paring to go upstairs. 

“ And what was Nancy doing with her hat and 
coat at this hour?” put in another girl, craftily. 
“ The Madame noticed that right away.” 

“The Madame!” gasped Jennie, stopping in- 
stantly. 

“ Oh, they’ve all gone into the office,” said 
Belle, eagerly. 

“Who— all?” 

“ Corinne and Cora and Nancy.” 

“ They’ve caught Nancy because she was going 
to run away? ” cried Jennie. 

“Run away?” repeated the other girls in 
chorus. 

The angry Jennie shook the bag in their 
faces. 

“ Do you know what this is?” she demanded. 


1 84 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

u Do you know what you girls by your meanness 
almost drove Nancy Nelson to? 

“I’ll tell you! She knows you all dislike her 
— hate her, in fact. She is so unhappy here that 
she was going to run away from Pinewood Hall 
and get work somewhere — that is what she was 
going to do. 

u She packed this bag and tossed it out of the 
window, and then she ran down to the door intend- 
ing to slip away. But she remembered that she had 
been forbidden to leave the building at this time 
of day, and that Madame Schakael had trusted 
her. 

“ So Nance wouldn’t break her word, and' I 
found her crying in the back hall there, and told 
her I would bring back her bag. That’s the 
truth! You girls have driven her to all that. 

u And now,” continued the wrathful Jennie, 
“ I’m going in there to tell Madame Schakael all 
about it. You girls don’t want to associate with 
Nancy because she is an orphan and has no home? 
Well, I don’t want to associate with you because 
you are all too mean to bother with! There 
now ! ” 

And the excited Jennie came down the steps, 
strode across the hall and entered the anteroom 
of the principal’s office, closing the door with a 
bang. 


CHAPTER XVIII 


BETTER TIME'S 

It was seldom that Madame Schakael seemed so 
stern as on this occasion. She perched herself 
upon her cushioned chair behind the desk table 
in her inner office, while the three girls — the sen- 
ior and the two freshmen — lined up before her. 

“ Now, Corinne, tell me all about it,” was her 
command to the older girl. 

“ I am not sure that I can tell you all, Ma- 
dame, n said Corinne, slowly. “ For I did not 
hear it all.” 

But the black-eyed Cora was getting back her 
courage now, and she suddenly burst out: 

“ I can tell you, Madame ! ” 

“ Perhaps — as it was your voice which I first 
heard — you had better tell me your side of it, 
Miss Rathmore,” agreed the principal. 

“There’s only one side to it, Madame I” ex- 
claimed Cora. “ I was just telling those girls — 
and Miss Pevay, who interfered ” 

“ Corinne is the captain of the West Side. You 
belong on the West Side. By no possibility could 
185 


1 86 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


your captain have interfered if you chose the public 
hall for any discussion,” said the Madame, with 
sudden sharpness. “ I want all you freshmen to 
understand that: The school captains must be re- 
spected and obeyed.” 

“ Well — I — I didn’t mean to be disrespectful,” 
murmured Cora, suddenly abashed. 

“ Perhaps not. But, Miss Rathmore, I fancy 
you will have to watch yourself closely to correct 
a tendency in that direction,” observed the Ma- 
dame, drily. “ Now, you may continue your 
statement.” 

Cora was quite put out for the moment. She 
had taken her first plunge into the matter, had 
been brought up short, and now scarcely knew how 
to carry on the attack on Nancy which had seemed 
so easy the minute before. 

“ Well— well— I— I ” 

“Why do you stammer so, Miss Rathmore?” 
asked the principal. “ Is it a fact that that which 
seemed so desirable to say just now appears to you 
in another light when you have taken time to 
think it over? ” 

Stung by this suggestion Cora threw all caution 
to the winds. Her black eyes flashed once more. 
She even stamped her foot as she pointed her finger 
at Nancy. 

“ I tell you what it is, Madame Schakael! ” she 


BETTER TIMES 


187 


cried. “ I won’t stay in the same dormitory with 
that girl another day. If you make me I’ll write 
home to my mother.” 

“ And your reasons? ” asked Madame Schakael, 
quite calmly. 

“ She is a perfect nobody ! ” gasped Cora. “ She 
came here from a charity school. She’s never 
lived anywhere else but at that school. She doesn’t 
know a living thing about herself — who she is, 
what her folks were, why they abandoned 
her ” 

Possibly Madame Schakael said something. 
But, if so, neither of the three heard what it was. 
Yet Cora suddenly stopped in her tirade — stricken 
dumb by the expression on the principal’s coun- 
tenance. 

The little lady’s face was ablaze with emotion. 
She raised a warning hand and it seemed as 
though, for a moment, she could not herself speak. 

“ Girl ! Who has dared tell you such per- 
fectly ridiculous things? What is the meaning of 
this wrangle in Pinewood Hall? I am amazed — » 
perfectly amazed — that a girl under my charge 
should express herself so cruelly and rudely, as 
well as in so nonsensical a manner. 

“ To put you right, first of all, Miss Rathmore, 
Miss Nelson’s position in life is entirely different 
from what you seem to suspect. She is an orphan, 


1 88 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


I understand; but Mr. Henry Gordon has a care- 
ful oversight of her welfare, and he pays for her 
education out of funds in his hands for that pur- 
pose, and I am instructed to let her want for noth- 
ing. She is not at all the friendless object of 
charity that you have evidently been led to be- 
lieve. 

“ The Higbee Endowment School in which 
Miss Nelson has been educated is by no means a 
charitable institution. It is a much better school 
than the one in which you were taught previous 
to coming to Pinewood, Miss Rathmore; I can 
accept pupils from Higbee into my freshman 
classes without any special preparation. 

“ I had no idea that girls under my charge 
would be so cruel as you seem to be toward Nancy 
Nelson. Corinne! what does it mean?” 

“ Pm afraid I have let it go too far, Madame,” 
responded the senior, gravely. “ But you know, 
these freshmen have got to learn to fight their own 
battles. I had to when I came.” 

“ Yes, yes; that is all right,” said the principal, 
waving her hand. “ But remember, Corinne, I 
mentioned to you when Nancy Nelson came that 
she was one of the sensitive kind.” 

“ And for that very reason the sensitive girls 
are hard to shake into their places,” declared the 
captain of the West Side. “ And then, she roomed 


BETTER TIMES 189 

with Cora, here, and I thought she was one of 
that crowd.’’ 

“ I guess my crowd is just as good as yours ! ” 
ejaculated Cora, plucking up the remnants of her 
courage. 

“ In my opinion, Madame Schakael,” continued 
Corinne, ignoring Cora, “ I’d give this Rathmore 
girl another roommate. It would be a kindness 
to Nancy.” 

At the moment Jennie Bruce entered with more 
abruptness than good manners. But Jennie was 
excited. 

“ Oh, Madame Schakael ! don’t punish her any 
more ! ” she cried, running to Nancy and throwing 
her arms about her. 

Necessarily she dropped the bag. The Ma- 
dame pointed to it. 

“ What is this, Miss Bruce? ” she demanded. 

“Let me tell you!” cried Jennie. “That’s 
what I came in for, Madame. These horrid 
girls — Rathmore and her tribe — have just hounded 
Nancy so that she wanted to run away.” 

“Run away?” gasped the principal. “From 
Pinewood? ” 

“ Yes, Madame ! But then she remembered she 
was on honor to stay indoors; so even after throw- 
ing her bag out of the window, she gave up the 
intention. And let me tell you,” added Jennie, 


190 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


storming with anger, “ if this stuck-up, silly Cora 
Rathmore doesn’t want to room with Nancy, I 
do ! ” 

The excited girl turned to the sobbing Nancy 
and took her in her arms again. 

“ Don’t you mind what the others say to you, 
Nance! ” she cried. “ I’ll stick to you, you bet! 
And maybe some time we can solve the mystery,” 
she added, in a whisper, “ and find out who you 
are. Then we’ll make ’em all sorry they treated 
you so,” for it seemed to be a foregone conclusion 
with Jennie that Nancy would prove to be a very 
great person indeed if her identity were once dis- 
covered. 

“ Dear, dear me ! ” exclaimed Madame Scha- 
kael, softly. But she really smiled upon the ex- 
cited Jennie. “ I shall have to write to your 
mother, Miss Bruce, after all, that you seem hope- 
less. You never will be able to restrain those 
over-abundant spirits of yours. 

“ But, my dear, I shall never have to tell that 
you are unkind. You have solved this little prob- 
lem, I believe. It would be undeserved punish- 
ment to keep Miss Nelson in the room with Miss 
Rathmore any longer. In fact, I believe that the 
punishment meted out to Miss Nelson already, 
and by myself, has been too heavy. 

“Two things shall be changed; Nancy Nelson 


BETTER TIMES 


191 

is released from the order to remain indoors in 
recreation hours. Furthermore, she shall have a 
new roommate.” 

She turned suddenly to the sullen Cora. 

“Miss Rathmore! You have revealed your- 
self to us all in a light which, to say the least, is 
not a happy one. I will remove you from Num- 
ber 30, West Side. Indeed, it would be an im- 
position upon Miss Nelson to keep you there. 
How do you suppose your present chum in Num- 
ber 40 would welcome Miss Rathmore, Jennie?” 
she added. 

“ Oh, I don’t know,” replied Jennie, her eyes 
twinkling. “Sally is one of Cora’s crowd; but 
I haven’t anything against Sally, so I wouldn’t 
wish Cora on her.” 

“That will do! that will do, Jennie! I did 
not ask you to be quite so frank,” said the Ma- 
dame, quickly. “What do you say, Corinne?” 

“ It’s a good idea, Madame,” returned the cap- 
tain, with a sigh. 

“ Very well, then; because Miss Nelson deserves 
a more pleasant and agreeable roommate, you 
may change places with Jennie Bruce, Miss Rath- 
more.” 

“ I don’t care how you put it, Madame ! ” ex- 
claimed Cora, with a toss of her head. “ I am 
glad to get out of Number 30. And, however 


192 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


you may put it, Nancy Nelson is a nobody ” 

“ You will lose your recreation hours until the 
Christmas holiday, Miss Rathmore,” declared the 
Madame, rapping on her desk with a pencil. 
“ And don’t let me hear any more of this back- 
biting and unkindness in the freshman class. 
Understand? You are all four excused.” 

They obeyed the little woman who — by turns — 
could be so stern and yet so kind. Cora Rath- 
more flashed out in the lead and, crying with 
shame and anger, ran upstairs without speaking to 
her chums at the foot of the flight. 

Corinne came out of the anteroom with an arm 
around the waist of each of the smaller girls. 
Quite a number of the West Side girls were either 
coming down the stairs, or had already gathered 
to wait for the doors to open into the dining room. 

“ I want you girlies to know,” said the captain, 
cheerfully, “ that we’ve got two perfect little bricks 
in this class of greenies at Pinewood Hall. And 
one of ’em’s named Jennie Bruce and the other’s 
named Nancy Nelson. 

“ I prophesy, too,” pursued the beauty of the 
school, “ that Jennie and Nancy are going to be 
the most notorious female Damon-and-Pythias 
combination we have ever had at Pinewood. 

“ Now, run along, you two children,” she 
added, giving Jennie and Nancy a little shove 


BETTER TIMES 


i93 

each, “ and get your eyes cooled off and wash your 
dirty little hands for supper. Hurry up ! ” 

And did Nancy and Jennie care what the girls 
said to them now? Not a bit of it! 

They went up the stairs and through the long 
corridor with their arms around each other. And 
Jennie insisted upon taking Nancy to her room to 
fix up for supper. 

“ We’ll only run across Cora in Number 30 — • 
and I don’t want to have to slap her face ! ” de- 
clared the still wrathful Jennie. 

“ Then I’ll help you pack up your things to 
bring to Number 30,” said Nancy. 

“ Oh, not before supper, Nance! ” cried Jennie, 
in horror. “ I could go out and bite a piece off 
the stone step, and swallow it right down, I’m so 
hungry.” 

For the first time since she had come to Pine- 
wood Hall, Nancy Nelson went down to supper 
with her arm around another girl’s waist, and 
another girl’s arm around hers. 

Jennie Bruce boldly sat beside her, too, al- 
though she belonged at another table. And they 
whispered together, and giggled, and were even 
reproved by one of the teachers — which was like- 
wise a new experience for Nancy, and perhaps did 
her no particular harm. 

“ Ah-ha, Miss Mousie ! ” said Corinne, pausing 


i 9 4 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

by the new chums as she made her tour of inspec- 
tion, and pinching Nancy’s ear; “ I see now I shall 
have both you and Bruce to watch. But don’t you 
two go too far.” 

Really, a brand new existence had opened for 
Nancy. Jennie’s ready championship of her did 
much to influence the opinion of the other girls; 
and the story Grace Montgomery and Cora Rath- 
more spread regarding Nancy fell rather flat. 

The Montgomery clique, after all, embraced 
only a very few of the freshman class and some 
half dozen or more sophs. The latter had no 
influence at all in Nancy’s class for, naturally, it 
was “ war to the knife ” between the freshies and 
the class immediately above them in the school. 

Corinne, too, after the grand explosion in which 
the Madame herself had taken part, saw to it 
more particularly that the Montgomery crowd did 
not “ pick on ” Nancy. If Jennie was about, how- 
ever, that was sufficient. Jennie Bruce would 
fight for her friend at the least provocation. 

Yet, after all, Nancy was not entirely easy in 
her mind. That the story of her being a “ mere 
nobody ” had failed to make her ostracised by 
the better class of Pinewood Hall girls, was a de- 
lightful fact. 

Yet the story was true. Nancy was nobody; 
as the Montgomery and Cora said, her parents 


BETTER TIMES 


195 


7 night be people of no morals nor breeding. 
There might be some great shame connected with 
herself and her family. 

The mystery of it all made Nancy very unhappy 
at times; but not so unhappy as before. Now 
she had a close friend with whom she could discuss 
the secret; and Jennie Bruce was just as deeply 
interested in Nancy’s affairs as was Nancy herself. 

“ Some day it will come all right, Nance,” the 
former assured her roommate. “ Maybe you and 
I will find out the truth. Perhaps that O’Brien 
boy will help. I have great faith in Scorch, and 
I want to meet him.” 

“ Oh ! do you suppose you and I could go to 
Cincinnati together! ” gasped Nancy. 

“Goody! It would be great!” 

“ And then you could see Scorch.” 

“ And I want to see that Mr. Gordon. I bet 
that lawyer knows more about you than he is will- 
ing to tell.” 

“ But perhaps he is doing his best for me, after 
all,” concluded Nancy, with a sigh. 

Number 30, West Side, began to get a new 
reputation after Jennie came to it. In the first 
place, Jennie was one of those girls who bring 
from home to boarding school countless memen- 
toes of their home life and of their family and 
friends. 


196 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Jennie’s photographs and funny pictures, and 
pennants, and all the other “ litter ” that a school- 
girl loves spilled over from her own bureau to 
Nancy’s, and not only was Jennie’s side of the den 
decorated, but there was plenty to decorate 
Nancy’s side. 

No longer was Nancy’s dressing-case the 
most plainly furnished in the school. There were 
bows of ribbon, and bright calendar pictures, and 
photo-frames, and numberless other little keep- 
sakes tacked to the wall on Nancy’s side. 

Jessie Pease put her head into Number 30 a 
day or two after Jennie’s arrival, and exclaimed 
with delight: 

“Ah-ha! now the dear bairn’s got a homey 
looking room, thanks be! It’s made my heart 
ache to see how barren the walls were. You’re 
a good girl, Janie Bruce, if you do make me a 
world of trouble.” 

“ Trouble ! Trouble ! ” shouted Jennie. “ How 
dare you say such a thing? ” and then she danced 
around the good soul, clapping her hands and 
singing: 

“ Pease Porridge hot — pease porridge cold — 
Pease porridge in the pot, nine days old! 
Some like it hot — some like it cold — 

But Jessie Pease of Pinewood never will be 
old!” 


BETTER TIMES 


197 


“ Bless ye, Janie,” said the good Scotchwoman, 
“ I hope I’ll never be any older than the youngest 
bairn who comes here to school.” 

“ Sure! you’re a regular kid! ” declared Jennie, 
hugging her. 

“ My usefulness here will be all forbye when I 
can’t be a lassie wi’ other lassies,” declared the 
lodgekeeper’s wife, kissing both Jennie and Nancy 
and then going her way. 

The pleasure of having Jennie Bruce in Number 
30 instead of Cora Rathmore was no small thing 
to Nancy. In Jennie’s society she began to ex- 
pand. She became, indeed, quite a different crea- 
ture from the quiet, almost speechless girl who had 
heretofore crept about Pinewood Hall. 

Girls of her own class, who had scarcely noticed 
Nancy before, suddenly found that she was a 
bright and cheerful body when once she was in- 
cluded in a group of her mates. 

She had made a splendid mark in classes, and 
stood equally high in such athletics as Miss Etch- 
ing encouraged. And on the ice she had shown 
herself to be the equal of many of the older 
girls. 

Now, with the ban lifted from her recreation 
hours, Nancy could go on the river again. And 
skating was one of her favorite sports. 

The weather had remained cold all this time 


198 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

and, when it snowed at all, there had been a high 
wind which blew the snow (for the most part) 
off the ice and so did not put a veto on skating. 

Clinton River was frozen nearly a foot in 
depth. The ice harvest had begun, and it was not 
yet Christmas. But where the men cut for the 
huge icebarns was beyond Dr. Dudley’s Academy, 
and so did not trouble the girls of Pinewood Hall 
who desired to skate. Nor did it trouble the boys 
from the Academy, either; they were all glad to 
move up river for their ice sports. 

Hockey was a favorite game of the boys, and 
Nancy one afternoon watched a match game be- 
tween the crack team of the Academy and one 
made up of lads from Clintondale. Bob Endress 
captained the school team and, Nancy thought, 
covered himself with glory. 

To Nancy’s secret disappointment Bob only 
bowed to her. He never skated with her again, 
although she saw him with Grace Montgomery 
and her friends. 

Nancy wasn’t particularly enamored of boys; 
Jennie liked them better than Nancy did, and was 
frank to say so, for Jennie was somewhat of a 
tomboy and always played with her brothers and 
their friends when she was at home. 

Bob Endress, however, had seemed to Nancy 
to be a particularly nice boy. And they had had 


BETTER TIMES 


199 

a secret understanding together before Grace and 
Cora had found out about Higbee School. 

Nancy said nothing to Jennie about it; but she 
wondered if Bob felt as the Montgomery clique 
did about her — that she was a mere nobody and 
was really beneath his notice. 

Of course, Nancy was only a young girl — in her 
first year at Pinewood Hall; and Bob Endress was 
quite three years her senior. Even Corinne Pevay 
and Carrie Littlefield showed interest in Bob, al- 
though he was only a junior at Dr. Dudley’s 
school. 

The girls had so many interests among them- 
selves on the ice, however, that they did not seek 
the boys’ society. Besides, this was not altogether 
approved. Miss Etching was usually with the 
girls in the afternoon, while one of the instructors 
from the Academy skated with the boys. 

Grace Montgomery made a great matter of 
Bob’s being her cousin. It was known to Miss 
Etching that the Senator and his wife approved 
of the intimacy of their daughter with the boy. 
Naturally Grace’s friends attracted Bob’s friends 
— and there you have it ! 

The many girls of Pinewood Hall, however, 
who found delight in skating for the sake of the 
sport itself, welcomed Nancy as one of their own. 
They found she could skate splendidly with a 


200 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


partner, that she could cut figure eights, could do 
the “ long roll,” and otherwise give a good account 
of herself on the ice. 

So when it was suggested that there should be 
a skating contest on the river one evening just 
previous to the Christmas holidays, Nancy was 
urged to participate. Of course, the older girls 
expected to carry off the palm. Corinne Pevay 
came from Canada, and one or two other girls 
lived well up toward the line. So their winters 
were long and they were proficient in every winter 
sport before they came to Pinewood. 

But Jennie urged Nancy to do her best in the 
long races. 

“ That’s where you will have ’em, Nance,” she 
declared. “ Half of these big girls lose their 
breath after a little run.” 

So Nancy entered for the two-mile race, which 
was the “ big number ” on the hastily-made-up 
program. The boys had helped them set stakes, the 
distance being ten laps around the course. 

Although the moon was small, the stars were 
brilliant and on the ice everything was as plain 
as day. Miss Maybrick and Miss Meader helped 
the physical instructor; and those girls who did 
not take part in the “ ice carnival,” as they laugh- 
ingly called it, came down to the river to see the 
races. 


BETTER TIMES 


201 


Each class rooted for their own champions. 
Corinne and Carrie were of course favorites of the 
seniors; but the juniors were sure they had a 
champion in one of their number, and even the 
sophs shouted for Judy Craig and were willing 
to back her even against the Canadian senior who 
had, as Jennie Bruce declared, “ been born on 
skates.” 

“ But just the same,” said Nancy’s roommate, 
“ you stand a good chance in the straightaway 
races and in the two-mile. Don’t you lose cour- 
age, Nance. I’ve watched you and I say that the 
freshies can afford to cheer for you, just as the 
sophs are rooting for Judy.” 

So Nancy went down to the ice that evening 
very much encouraged — and more excited than she 
had ever been since coming to Pinewood Hall. 


CHAPTER XIX 


THE RACES 

The straightaway races came first. Corinne, in 
her cherry-colored sweater and black cap and 
black, short skirt, looked startlingly pretty. And 
how she could skate — for a little way ! 

Between posts the Canadian senior carried off 
all honors — beating every other girl easily. 

And she could do fancy “ stunts ” like a boy — 
whirling on one skate after a running start, cutting 
the double-eight, spinning like a top — oh, a whole 
lot of things that Nancy, or any other younger girl, 
had never attempted. 

Yet when they lined up for the second race — one 
lap around the course — Nancy, who chanced to 
stand next to Corinne, knew that the captain of 
the West Side was breathing too heavily for a 
girl just entering a trial of speed. 

“ She’s not going to win this time,” thought 
Nancy, and looked down the line of contestants. 
Cora Rathmore was near the far end. u I hope 
she won’t be the lucky one,” thought Nancy. 

Nancy was scarcely ready at the start. She 


202 


THE RACES 


203 


“ got off ” badly. But to her surprise she found 
herself keeping well up with the bigger girls. 
And she did not have to exert herself much, either. 

Corinne began to laugh, and Nancy passed 
her. 

“ Go on, Nancy, for the honor of our side! ” 
gasped the Canadian. “ I’m out of this race.” 

Spurred by her words Nancy “ let out a link,” 
as Jennie Bruce would have said. She found that 
there were other contestants that she could easily 
pass. When they turned the stake only Cora, 
Carrie Littlefield, Judy Craig, and one or two 
others were ahead. 

To skate rapidly one should not use a “ rolling ” 
stroke; and Nancy saw that Carrie, the biggest 
girl ahead, was striking out too widely. She 
dashed from side to side of the course, taking up 
more than her just share, indeed, and covering 
more ice than was necessary. 

Nancy took short, quick strokes. Her method 
was a bit jerky, perhaps, and lacked grace; but she 
was going straight down the stretch to the 
“ home ” stake, and before they had covered half 
the distance Nancy passed Carrie, and then Judy 
Craig. 

But there was Cora Rathmore, her oldtime 
roommate and enemy, right ahead. Cora seemed 
to deliberately block her way, for occasionally she 


204 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

threw a glance behind her, and changed her course 
as Nancy tried to slip by. 

The race was not between Cora and Nancy. 
There were two older girls ahead and it would 
have been hardly possible, at this stage of the con- 
test, for either of the freshmen to overtake the 
leaders. 

But it was evident that the Rathmore girl did 
not intend to let Nancy pass her. Once again the 
latter tried to turn out; and then, seeing that Cora 
flung herself that way, Nancy struck into a wide 
curve that should have taken her completely around 
Cora. 

But as Nancy struck her left skate upon the ice 
again, something clashed with it, checked her 
course abruptly and, if she had not flung her- 
self sideways upon the ice, and slid, she might 
have wrenched her foot badly. 

“Oh! oh!” shrieked Jennie. “Nancy’s been 
thrown ! ” 

But her friend picked herself up at once, and 
with a laugh skated on after the other contestants. 
One of the first-class girls won. 

“ How did you come to fall?” demanded Jen- 
nie, with lively interest. 

“ Oh, it must have been a twig sticking up in 
the ice,” declared Cora, before Nancy could re- 
ply. “ You can’t see them at night.” 


THE RACES 


205 

“ Was that it, Nance? ” demanded Jennie, sus- 
piciously. 

“ It — it must have been,” admitted Nancy. But 
in her heart of hearts Nancy knew that she had 
stumbled over the toe of Cora Rathmore’s skate. 
The girl had deliberately thrown her. 

It made no difference in the result of the race. 
Nancy could not have won, she knew. But it 
warned her to look out for Cora Rathmore if she 
raced again with her. 

Nancy rested after that, refusing to enter any of 
the minor contests until the long race — the piede 
de resistance of the evening — was called. 

This was the endurance test that Miss Etching 
was anxious to have go off well. The physical in- 
structor of Pinewood Hall had an object in putting 
her girls against a two-mile skate. More than 
Jennie Bruce had noted the fact that many of the 
best skaters among the juniors and seniors lacked 
“ wind.” 

It was hard for the instructor to watch all the 
girls closely enough to be sure that they dressed 
properly even in the gym. work. She had warned 
them to dress loosely under their warm sweaters 
for the ice, too ; for in skating every muscle in the 
body needs free play. 

But certain girls, like Grace Montgomery 
among the freshmen, and the dressier girls of the 


20 6 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


older classes, gabbled a deal more than was good 
for them about their “ figures/’ and studied the 
fashion-plates too much. 

But there were the warm dressing rooms in the 
boathouse for the girls to change in, and those 
who entered for the ten-lap race took advantage 
of these rooms to lay aside any garment that tram- 
meled their movements. They all realized that it 
was an endurance test. 

Thirty-eight girls were called by Miss Etch- 
ing to line up for the long race. Some of them, 
of course, didn’t have a ghost of a show for honors 
in the trial of speed and endurance; but they 
wanted to show what they could do. 

Jennie Bruce herself was one of the contestants; 
but, as she told Nancy, she didn’t expect to go 
half the distance. Some of the seniors who were 
in earnest remarked that they didn’t see the use in 
letting the “ greenies ” clutter up the ice. But 
Miss Etching had announced it as a free-for-all 
race and the big girls could not freeze out the 
contestants from the younger classes. 

Indeed, the classes were each backing their own 
champions. The seniors were strongly for Co- 
rinne Pevay, who had recovered her breath and 
promised to bring home the prize. Carrie Little- 
field was a favorite with the class that would 
graduate the next June from Pinewood Hall, too. 


THE RACES 


207 


The juniors had half a dozen girls who all be- 
lieved they could bear off the palm. Judy Craig 
was being “ rooted ” for by the sophomores. Of 
course, none of the three upper classes believed 
that a freshman had a chance; but Grace Mont- 
gomery had reserved herself all the evening for 
this contest, and now her friends were noisily de- 
claring that she could win “ if she tried.” 

“ She’d better try, then,” observed Jennie, with 
a laugh. “ And try mighty hard, too. Some of 
those big girls have raced before and they have 
trained several terms under Miss Etching.” 

“ You’re not loyal to the class,” declared Cora 
Rathmore, sharply. 

44 1 should worry! I’d like to see a freshman 
win; but Grace hasn’t a chance.” 

44 She’ll show you,” cried Sally, Jennie’s former 
roommate. “Grace Montgomery is a splendid 
skater. And you’ve never seen her really let her- 
self out.” 

44 Say ! she ‘ lets herself out ’ every time she 
speaks,” growled Jennie. “We all know what 
she is — bluff and bluster ! ” 

44 Is that so, Miss Smartie ! ” exclaimed Cora 
Rathmore, standing up for the girl she toadied to. 
44 Let me tell you that Grace is the most popular 
girl in our class. Wait till we have election for 
class president.” 


208 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“ I’m waiting,” remarked Jennie, calmly. 
“ But what will that have to do with Grace Mont- 
gomery? ” 

“ You’ll find out then how popular she is.” 

“ I will, and so will she,” chuckled Jennie, sud- 
denly all a-smile. 

“ You don’t believe she will have the most 
votes? ” 

“ Not, unless she puts them all in herself,” 
laughed Jennie. “ Why ! if Grace had a chance to 
be class president I’d go into sackcloth and ashes 
during the rest of the year.” 

“ You wait and see ! ” snapped Cora. 

In her heart Jennie believed that the only girl 
among the freshmen entries who had the least 
chance to win the long race was Nancy. But she 
knew that this wasn’t the time to begin “ rooting ” 
for her friend. 

Indeed, the best way to do was to cheer for all 
the freshies entered until they showed — within 
the first few laps — what they could do. And to 
this method Jennie, — a leader among the younger 
girls, — clung. 

At the starting shot — for Miss Etching was not 
afraid of a pistol and used it to start the race — 
the thirty-eight girls got away from the line with- 
out much confusion. The best skaters were 
quickly in the lead, so that there was little en- 


THE RACES 


209 


tanglement at the first stake. By that time the 
girls were strung out for some yards. 

Rounding the home stake for the first time, the 
seniors and juniors, with Judy Craig and — to 
Jennie’s surprise — Grace Montgomery and Cora, 
were in the lead. Nancy was trailing them easily, 
but it worried Jennie. 

The latter lost her head and did all her best 
work — put out every bit of strength she had — in 
the second lap. She passed Nancy and many of 
the other girls belonging to the freshies and sophs; 
but she could not reach Grace and Cora. Judy 
Craig fell back, however. 

At the beginning of the third lap more than half 
the girls dropped out. The leaders were so far 
ahead it was useless for them to continue. And 
their dropping out cleared the course for the real 
contestants. 

Jennie fell back in that third lap, and Nancy 
passed her, still skating easily, and about half a 
lap behind the leaders. 

“Oh, dear, Nance! Do hurry up and beat 
them,” gasped Jennie. “ I’d hate to see Grace 
— or Cora — carry off the glory for our class.” 

Nancy did not speak; she only smiled. She 
saved her breath — as Jennie might better have 
done. 

For, at the beginning of the fourth lap, both 


210 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


of the girls who called themselves leaders of the 
freshmen class began to fall back, although they 
still struggled. The race was not half over and 
only ten girls remained in it. Jennie fairly fell 
to the ice, and sat there, panting. But she 
cheered Nancy when her chum passed her on the 
next — the fifth — round. 

“ Go it, old ‘ slow but sure ! ’ ” she cried. 
“ You’re going to make your mark, I see.” 

It was only a few minutes later that Nancy, 
without increasing her speed, was right on the 
heels of Grace and Cora. 

Ahead of these two freshmen were only two 
seniors, four juniors, and one soph. The leading 
girls — three of them — were more than half a lap 
ahead of Nancy; the others were strung out along 
the course. 

Grace and Cora saw Nancy creeping up on 
them. They were losing ground steadily, and 
there was no “ spurt ” in them. Cora, indeed, 
was crying with vexation and nervousness. 

“ She’s going to pass us, Grace — the nasty 
thing! ” she panted. 

“ Keep up, Cora! ” begged her friend, and de- 
liberately crossed in front of Nancy at the post, 
to keep her back. 

Nancy lost stroke a little. They came down 
the course toward the home stake on this — the fifth 


THE RACES 


2 1 1 


— lap. Miss Etching skated slowly forward to 
eye the line of struggling girls. She had person- 
ally taken several of the younger contestants out 
of the race because she saw that they were doing 
too much. 

Nancy tried to shoot ahead of her two class- 
mates again. Grace and Cora almost collided 
in their attempt to balk Nancy. 

But the physical instructor saw them. 

“ Miss Montgomery ! Miss Rathmore ! Out 
of the race ! ” she commanded, in a tone that was 
heard by most of the spectators gathered near. 

“ And just as I was getting my second wind ! ” 
cried Grace, angrily, as she came down to her 
waiting friends. 

“ I put you out for fouling,” declared Miss 
Etching, firmly. “ Miss Rathmore, too. You 
are traitors to your class. Miss Nelson has a 
chance to make a record for you and you deliber- 
ately tried to keep her back. She is the freshest 
girl on the ice at this moment,” declared the 
teacher, with enthusiasm. 

But Nancy did not hear this. She had rounded 
the stake in the wake of the older girls, and kept 
“ plugging along ” as though tireless. She was 
doing her part as usual — faithfully but not bril- 
liantly — and had no idea that she was in danger 
of making a record for the freshman class. 


CHAPTER XX 


THE FRESHMAN ELECTION 

The night was cold, but delightful. Nancy Nel- 
son had never felt so sure upon her skates, or so 
able to keep up her steady stroke for a long 
distance, as she did now. 

The struggle earlier in the evening had seemed 
to put the right temper into her muscles. Having 
been relieved by Miss Etching of the two girls — 
her own classmates — who had attempted to retard 
her progress, Nancy kept on and on, seeing the 
distance between herself and the leaders in the 
race diminishing — by no effort of her own, it 
seemed — and just enjoying herself. 

She skated past Judy Craig, and saw that that 
eager sophomore was sobbing for breath, and 
could hardly stand. Nancy felt little weariness 
and still enjoyed the pace. She had not spurted 
in the beginning and waited for that wonderful 
“ second wind ” that is the help of all long-dis- 
tance racers, before increasing her first easy 
pace. 

Now she increased her stroke for a second time, 


212 


THE FRESHMAN ELECTION 213 

and almost at once flashed past two of the older 
girls. One of them was a senior. 

The crowd began to shout for her when Nancy 
came around the home stake now. Jennie Bruce 
led the freshmen rooters, and the volume of sound 
they made showed that there were few “ dyed-in- 
the-wool ” Montgomeryites, after all. 

Nancy Nelson, the single remaining freshman 
on the ice, was the hope of the class. Corinne and 
Carrie and one of the juniors were still struggling 
far ahead; but the school as a whole soon began 
to be more deeply interested in the progress 
of Nancy than in the struggle of the leading 
girls. 

“ That little Nelson is making them all look 
sick,” declared the stout soph, Belle Macdonald. 
“ I hated to see our Judy drop out; but I’d rather 
see a freshman win over those juniors and seniors, 
if a sophomore can’t do it.” 

“ Pah ! ” exclaimed Cora Rathmore, “ Nelson 
hasn’t a chance with that Canuck. None of us 
had.” 

“ Nancy is skating easier than all of them,” 
observed one of the other girls. 

“ Wouldn’t it be odd if a freshman should 
win?” cried Sally. 

“ It wouldn’t be funny at all if that Nancy 
Nelson won,” snapped Cora. “That nobody!” 


214 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ There’d be no living with her at all, then,” 
added Grace Montgomery. 

“Hurrah for Nance!” shouted Jennie Bruce, 
when the contestants swung past the home stake 
again. “ She’s going to win ! ” 

The racers began their eighth lap. Not until 
now had Jennie really believed her own statement 
— that Nancy had a chance to win. But it ac- 
tually began to look so. 

They came around again. Carrie had dropped 
far behind Corinne and the junior. Nancy was 
swinging along, hands clasped behind her back, 
taking each stroke firmly — rolling just a little, in- 
deed — and seemingly almost as fresh as when she 
began. 

“ Bully for you, Nancy Nelson! ” many of the 
freshies cried. “ Show ’em what you can do ! 
Don’t give up, Nancy!” 

But Nancy had no intention of giving up. She 
believed she could keep on to the end, and with- 
out reducing speed. And on the ninth lap she 
passed Carrie. 

Only two were ahead of her now. As she 
swung down the home-stretch behind the senior 
and junior, Nancy’s mates began to shout like 
mad girls: 

“ Come on! Come on! Don’t let ’em freeze 
you out, Nancy Nelson! ” 



NANCY FLASHED PAST THEM 


Page 215. 




THE FRESHMAN ELECTION 215 

“ You’re going to beat, Nance! ” cried Jennie 
Bruce, fairly jumping up and down. “ Show ’em 
what you can do ! ” 

There was only one more lap — one-fifth of a 
mile. Nancy drew in a long breath as she rounded 
the stake, and looked ahead. Corinne and her 
nearest antagonist had spurted a little; but Nancy 
put her head down, and darted up the course at 
a speed which equalled what the other girls had 
done at their best. 

It was really wonderful how swiftly the fresh- 
man overtook her older rivals. Nancy skated 
more swiftly than she had in that first dash of the 
evening. 

There was nobody to shut her off now. Cora 
was not here to foil or trip her. Corinne and the 
junior played fair. 

Before the older girls reached the rounding 
stake, Nancy flashed past them. The junior 
spurted, came even with Nancy for a moment at 
and turn, and then dropped back, to become a 
bad third in the race. She could never recover 
after that spurt. 

But the French-Canadian girl held on grimly. 
Slowly she crept up on the freshman. The seniors 
shouted for their champion; but the rest of the 
school was calling Nancy home! 

“Oh, Nancy! Oh, Nancy! Come on!” 


21 6 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


Nancy heard Jennie Bruce’s voice above all the 
turmoil ahead. Her eyes had begun to water, 
and the white, badly cut-up ice of the straight 
course seemed to waver before her. 

At her ear she could hear Corinne’s labored 
breathing. The ring of her rival’s skates rasped 
upon the younger girl’s nerves, too. 

She was under a great strain now. Another 
full lap would have been more than she could have 
skated without a breakdown. It was being 
pressed so close and hard that was wearing Nancy 
down. She was not used to such contests. 

But her roommate’s cracked voice, shouting 
again and again for her, kept Nancy to the mark. 
Corinne should not pass her! 

She flung herself forward against the wind and 
worked with teeth that sank into her lip and drew 
the blood! On — on — on 

She felt something against her hands — against 
her breast — she was tangled up in it ! Something 
had fouled her, and she had failed, for Corinne 
swept by at that moment. 

And then the girls caught her — Jennie and many 
of her own class, as well as some of the older girls. 
They were cheering her, and praising her work — 
for it was the tape she had run against. 

The race was finished and Nancy had won ! 

Three-quarters of the school were on the ice. 


THE FRESHMAN ELECTION 217 

Something like three hundred girls can make a 
lot of noise ! 

And there was only a tiny group that broke 
away from the main body and went home in the 
sulks because Nancy had won the race. Of course 
this was the Montgomery clique. 

“ I can tell you right now who won’t be presi- 
dent of our class,” whispered Jennie to Cora Rath- 
more before the latter got away in Grace Mont- 
gomery’s train. 

“I suppose you think Nancy Nelson will!” 
snapped Cora. 

It was the first time the idea had come into 
Jennie’s mind. 

It was only three days before the breaking up 
for the holidays. Everybody was so enthusiastic 
about Nancy, that Jennie’s work was half done 
for her. 

To see the quietest girl in the school, yet the 
one who stood highest in her own class, praised 
and feted by the seniors, made Nancy’s fellow- 
classmates consider her of more importance than 
ever before. 

So Jennie’s work was easy. She went among 
the freshies and whispered — first to one alone, 
then to two together, then to little groups. And 
the burden of her tale was always the same: 

“ The Madame will stand for her — you see ! 


2 1 8 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


She’s the best little sport there is in the class. 
She’s scarcely had a mark against her, yet she’s 
no goody-goody. 

“ See how she stood for those other girls who 
treated her so meanly — and never opened her 
mouth. Why, the Madame could have burned 
her at the stake and Nance would never have said 
a word to incriminate that Montgomery crowd. 

“ And there won’t be a teacher to object. She’s 
on all their good books. Me? Of course I’ve 
an axe to grind,” and Jennie laughed. u She’s 
my roommate, and if she gets the ‘ high hat ’ I’ll 
hope to bask in her reflected glory.” 

Jennie Bruce was an excellent politician. Had 
it lain with the girls alone, lively Jennie might 
have been president of the freshman class herself. 
But the girls knew that the Madame would never 
allow it. Jennie’s record for the weeks she had 
been a student at Pinewood Hall precluded such 
an honor. 

The day before the break-up the members of 
the freshman class voted for president. Each 
girl sealed her vote in an envelope and the num- 
bered envelopes were passed into the Madame’s 
office. 

At supper that night, at the time when the school 
captains marched around the room “ to inspect the 
girls’ hair-ribbons,” as Jennie said, Corinne 


THE FRESHMAN ELECTION 219 

brought a high, old-fashioned, much dented beaver 
hat in her hand. 

That didn’t tell the eager freshmen anything, 
for both the principal candidates for president of 
the class had been from the girls rooming on the 
West Side, and therefore were under Corinne’s 
jurisdiction. 

Grace Montgomery’s friends began to cheer for 
her. The friends of the other candidates — and 
there were several — kept still. 

“Wait!” advised Jennie, in a stage whisper. 
“ We can afford to yell all the louder a little later 
— maybe.” 

But Corinne tantalized the smaller girls by 
walking all around the tables the first time without 
putting the tall hat on any girl’s head. Once or 
twice she hesitated behind a girl’s chair; but that 
only made the others laugh, for they knew that 
those particular girls had had no chance of election 
anyway. 

“ Come on! ” shouted Cora. “You might as 
well bring it over here where it belongs,” and she 
put an arm over the blushing Grace’s shoulders. 

But Grace did her blushing for nothing. Co- 
rinne crossed the room swiftly, came straight to 
the corner where Jennie sat, and 

Drew the hat firmly down over Nancy Nelson’s 
ears! 


220 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


Nancy could scarcely believe it. She — Miss 
Nobody from Nowhere — the most popular girl 
in her class? It was like a dream — only, as she 
admitted to Jennie, laughing, it was a dreadfully 
noisy dream! 

Corinne could scarcely command silence long 
enough to read the result of the balloting. Nancy 
had received nearly one-half of the freshman vote. 
Grace Montgomery had mustered only eight bal- 
lots, while the remainder were scattered among 
half a dozen other candidates. 

The disappointed girls, all but Grace, cheered 
Nancy, too — and hugged her, and made her 
march ahead of the class, all around the big din- 
ing room, and then into the hall, which was given 
up to the use of the freshman class for that par- 
ticular evening. 

There the complete organization of the class 
was arranged, and Nancy presided with pretty 
dignity, and even Grace Montgomery and her 
friends had to acknowledge the leadership of the 
girl whom they had so ill-treated for the past 
weeks. 

Many of the girls went home the next day for 
the ten days’ vacation. Those who lived at a 
distance, however, remained at Pinewood. So 
Nancy was not alone over the short vacation as 
she wont to be at Higbee School. 


THE FRESHMAN ELECTION 221 


Jennie lived not far from Cincinnati, and she 
couldn’t remain away from home at Christmas. 

“ I wish you were going with me, you dear old 
thing! ” she said to Nancy, hugging her. “ You 
wait till I tell mother about you! You shall go 
home with me at Easter — if that Old Gordon will 
let you; and if you like it at my home we’ll have 
you part of the long vacation, too. 

“ And I’m going to get my big brother, John, 
to take me into the city while I’m home, and I’m 
going to see Scorch. Just think! Maybe we can 
find out all about what Mr. Gordon is hiding 
from you.” 

“ If he is hiding anything, Jennie,” said Nancy, 
shaking her head. 

And yet, after all the wonderful things that had 
happened to her of late, Nancy could almost be- 
lieve that even the mystery of her identity might 
in time be solved. 


CHAPTER XXI 


SENATOR MONTGOMERY 

But Jennie Bruce came back to Pinewood Hall 
after the holidays with no news of importance for 
her roommate and chum. 

“ I saw that red-headed boy/’ she said. “ My 
goodness me, Nance! what a freak he is,” and 
Jennie burst into laughter at the remembrance of 
Scorch O’Brien. “ John and I took him to lunch- 
eon and John couldn’t eat for laughing at him.” 

“ I think Scorch is real nice,” said Nancy, smil- 
ing reflectively. 

“ Oh, he’s strong for you, all right,” admitted 
Jennie, nodding. “ He thinks you are about the 
only girl who ever came into his sweet young 
life ” 

“What nonsense!” said Nancy, blushing, but 
smiling, too. 

“ All right. He’s willing to go to desperate 
lengths to help you, just the same,” and Jennie 
smiled in remembrance of the red-haired youth’s 
enthusiasm. 


222 


SENATOR MONTGOMERY 223 

“ I guess it’s mostly talk. Scorch dearly loves 
to talk,” said Nancy. 

“ He wanted John to help him rob ‘ Old Gor- 
don’s ’ private safe,” laughed Jennie. “ He says 
he believes there are papers in that safe that would 
explain all about you. He wanted John to stay 
over that night and stand watch while he, Scorch, 
opened the safe with something he called a 
jimmy! ” 

“The ridiculous boy!” said Nancy. 

“But I tell you!” exclaimed Jennie, “John 
works for a man who knows your Mr. Gordon. 
John is going to get Mr. Pennywell to find out — 
if he can — from Mr. Gordon if he really knows 
more about your folks than he is willing to tell 
you. Mr. Pennywell is a client — and a good 
client — of your Mr. Gordon. Hateful old 
thing ! ” 

“ But perhaps he isn’t hateful,” Nancy objected, 
shaking her head. 

“ I bet he is. Scorch says he is hiding some- 
thing. That boy is bright.” 

“ Really brilliant — when it comes to his hair,” 
suggested Nancy, laughing. 

But there were so many other things to take up 
the thoughts of the two chums after this brief 
separation, that the mystery about Nancy figured 
little in their activities for a time. 


224 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Nancy’s new dignity as president of the class 
bore heavily upon her at first, for she feared that 
she would not discharge her duty to the other 
freshmen in a proper way. 

The Montgomery clique was of course a con- 
tinual thorn in her side. It never numbered, how- 
ever, more than eight or ten girls of that class. 
Grace made many of her friends in the sophomore 
class. 

The teachers, however, were decidedly in favor 
of Nancy. She gained the head of her classes in 
most studies, and did not slight lessons to join in 
the fun of the other girls. Yet she was no prig — 
no matter what Grace and Cora said. 

A rather solemn thought had come to the girl 
on the night of that day when she had started to 
run away from Pinewood Hall. Suppose she 
should, suddenly and without warning, be thrown 
upon her own resources? 

Most girls of Nancy’s age do not think of such 
unpleasant things. Nor, in many cases, could 
such an unhappy turn of circumstances affect them. 

Yet it might happen at any time to Nancy. 
That was the way she felt about it. 

Suppose the mysterious fountain from which, 
through the channel of Mr. Gordon, flowed the 
money to support her, suddenly should dry up? 

She could be pretty sure that Mr. Gordon would 


SENATOR MONTGOMERY 225 

not go on supporting her and paying for her 
schooling, and all. No, indeed! He had not 
struck Nancy in her single interview with him as 
being that sort of a man. 

So with this thought hovering in the back- 
ground of her mind all the time, it was no wonder 
that Nancy made the most of her opportunities as 
the days passed. She was determined to learn 
everything Pinewood Hall and its mistress and 
instructors had to teach her. 

She learned to be an expert typewriter before 
Easter, and improved her spelling immensely. 
Other girls had the same opportunity, if they 
cared to exercise it; for there were plenty of 
machines they could learn on as Nancy did. But 
few of the girls at Pinewood Hall cared to take 
“ extras.” Most of their parents were very well- 
to-do, and why should they exert themselves to 
learn merely practical things? 

Nancy took up stenography with gentle Miss 
Meader, too. The latter acted as the Madame’s 
secretary, so she had practical use for shorthand. 
She and Nancy corresponded daily in the “ pot- 
hooks,” as Jennie Bruce called the stenographic 
signs. 

Nevertheless, Nancy managed to cram into her 
waking hours an immense amount of fun as well 
as lessons. The Madame did not believe that all 


226 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


work was good for Jill, any more than it is good 
for Jack. 

When the snow came there was sleigh-riding, 
class parties being made up while the moon was 
big, the girls going off in great “ barges,” which 
would hold from forty to sixty of them, and 
stopping at a certain country tavern, of which 
Madame Schakael approved, where hot oyster 
stews were served. 

Then, before Lent, there was the big dance of 
the year, when the girls of Pinewood Hall and the 
boys of the Clinton Academy mingled under the 
shrewd eyes of their respective heads. 

Dr. Dudley was a solemn, long-faced, stiff-look- 
ing old gentleman, with a great mop of sandy hair 
brushed off his high brow, who never looked 
really dressed unless he had on a tall hat and a 
frock coat. In dancing pumps and a white waist- 
coat and tail coat he looked rather ridiculous. 

And when he led out Madame Schakael — who 
looked like a sweet-faced French doll — for the 
grand march, they really did look funny together. 

But it was no stiff and formal ball after the 
“ heads ” of the two schools were off the floor. 
The boys and girls had a most delightful time 
— even Nancy enjoyed it, although she, like most 
of the freshmen, played wallflower a good part 
of the time. 


SENATOR MONTGOMERY 227 

Nancy saw Bob Endress, but merely to bow to. 
He seemed always to have his “ hands full ” with 
the older girls, or with Grace Montgomery and 
her satellites. But Nancy’s mind lingered upon 
boys very little. She danced with other girls and 
had quite as good a time, she was sure, as she 
should have had had Bob Endress danced every 
number with her. 

So passed the winter and the spring, and the 
Easter holidays came. Nancy had received a 
very prettily-worded invitation from Jennie’s 
mother to spend these with them. 

It was the first invitation of the kind Nancy 
Nelson had ever received, so you can imagine how 
overjoyed she was. Madame Schakael approved. 
Then it was necessary to get Mr. Gordon’s per- 
mission. 

Nancy had thanked Mr. Gordon for the twenty- 
dollar bill he had sent her, but had not heard 
personally from him in reply. She had broken 
an understood rule, too, to write twice to Scorch 
O’Brien — just little notes thanking him for re- 
membering her. 

By the way, the twenty dollars that had been 
lent to Cora Rathmore to pay for the famous 
supper in Number 30 when Nancy had been frozen 
out, had never been returned, either completely, 
or in part. Cora Rathmore seemed to have for- 


228 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


gotten her debt to Nancy when she returned from 
her holiday at Christmas time. 

Corinne suspected that Nancy had not been 
repaid; but nobody else really knew anything 
about it — not even Jennie. Nancy would not 
talk about it when some of the girls became 
curious. 

She had not needed the money for anything. 
At New Year’s Mr. Gordon had sent her a ten- 
dollar note, but through Madame Schakael. 
When she asked him if she could go home with 
Jennie Bruce over Easter, he sent her at once 
another twenty dollars and his permission — the 
latter just as short as it could be written. 

Scorch evidently watched the mail basket on 
Mr. Gordon’s desk with the eye of an eagle. A 
second letter with the card of the law firm upon 
it was put into Nancy’s hand almost in the same 
mail with Mr. Gordon’s letter. Such letters 
passed through the Madame’s hands without be- 
ing opened. It was a secret that troubled Nancy 
sometimes; yet she could not u give Scorch away.” 
This was Scorch’s letter : 

“ Dear Miss Nancy: 

“ I see Old Gordon has risked another perfectly 
good yellow-back in the mail. He’ll ruin the 
morals of the mail clerks (I rote that word ‘ mail ’ 
wrong before) if he keeps on. Know how I seen 


SENATOR MONTGOMERY 229 

the yellow-back in the letter? I punched a hole 
with a pin in the crease of the envelope at each 
end. Squeeze the sides of the envelope together 
a little and then squint through from one hole to 
the other. That’s an old one. 

I want you to know I’m on the job. That 
Jennie girl you sent to me is some peach; but she 
ain’t in your class for looks, just the same. Her 
brother is a pretty good feller, too ; but we 
couldn’t get together on any scheme for jolting 
what you want to know out of Old Gordon. The 
time will come, just the same. When it does, I’m 
little Johnny On-the-Spot — don’t forget that. 

So no more at present, from 

u Yours very respectfully, 

“Scorch O’Brien.” 

There was not time to answer Scorch at once; 
but when Nancy was at Jennie’s home the girls 
wrote to the office boy of Ambrose, Necker & 
Boles and invited him to come out to see them. 
But Scorch was bashful and did not come; so 
Nancy returned to Pinewood without seeing her 
champion. 

A great many things happened after that 
spring vacation — the last half of Nancy’s fresh- 
man term — which might be told about; but- we 
may only relate a few of them. 

Her record was splendid. Her government 
of her class satisfied everybody but the Montgom- 


230 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


ery faction. Grace and Cora did all they safely 
could throughout the term to trouble Nancy. 
Sometimes they succeeded; but she had learned 
not to “ carry her heart on her sleeve.” 

Corinne, Carrie, and the rest of the seniors were 
all in a flutter because of approaching graduation. 
The other girls — junior, sophomore, and fresh- 
man — often discussed eagerly what the summer 
vacation had in store for them. 

For the first time in her young life, Nancy Nel- 
son looked forward, too, to the summer with de- 
light. She was going home with Jennie just as 
soon as school closed — that is, unless Mr. Gordon 
should object. And it was not believed that he 
would. 

Jennie’s parents and brothers and sisters were 
just as well pleased with the quiet little orphan as 
Jennie herself had been. They were glad to have 
her in their big house between terms. 

So June approached, and the yearly exams., and 
other finishing work, loomed ahead. 

Pinewood Hall was a beautiful place now. The 
park was in its very best condition. Mr. Pease 
and Samuel, and their helpers, made every path 
straight and clean, raked the groves of all rub- 
bish, and the two horse mowers and the roller 
were at work on the lawns, making them like 
velvet carpets. 


SENATOR MONTGOMERY 231 

Nancy came out of Jessie Pease’s cottage one 
day to see a handsome man in a gray suit, with 
gray spats, and gray hair, and even a gray silk 
shirt, walking slowly up the drive toward the 
Hall. In the shade of the trees (it was a hot 
day) he removed his gray, broad-brimmed hat. 
And out of that hat fell his handkerchief. 

When Nancy, hastening, picked up this article, 
she found that it was silk, with a gray border, too, 
and an initial in one corner. The initial was 
“ M.” 

“ You dropped this, sir, I think,” she said, 
timidly, coming abreast of the stranger. 

He turned to look at her. He had heavy, 
smoothly-shaven jowls and not a very healthy com- 
plexion. His eyes were little, and green. Nancy 
had expected to see a very handsome, noble-look- 
ing old gentleman. Instead, she saw a very sly- 
looking man, with something mean and furtive 
in his manner, despite his fine build and immacu- 
late dress. 

“ Ah ! thank you, thank you, my pretty miss,” 
he said, accepting the handkerchief. “ It is a very 
warm day.” 

“Yes, sir,” responded Nancy, politely. 

“ And you, I suppose, go to school here at Pine- 
wood? ” 

“ Oh, yes.” 


232 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“A beautiful place! A very beautiful place,” 
said the stranger. “ You may be acquainted with 
a girl named Montgomery, now? ” 

“Yes, sir,” said Nancy, with gravity. 

“ Now, where might she be found at this 
hour? ” 

Nancy chanced to have seen Grace and some 
of her satellites sitting in a pergola on a mound 
not far away. She pointed out the path to the 
stranger. 

“ Thank you — thank you, my dear,” said the 
gray man, and insisted upon shaking hands with 
her. 

Indeed, he looked curiously after her as she 
passed on. Then, as he turned to follow the 
path pointed out to him, he shook his head, say- 
ing, under his breath : 

“ Strange ! Familiar, somehow. Looks fa- 
miliar ” 

A cry warned him that he was seen. Flying 
down from the pergola came Grace, with Cora 
close behind her. 

“Oh, Father! you dear! I’m so glad to see 
you ! ” exclaimed Grace. 

“ So unexpected, dear Senator Montgomery,” 
said Cora, in quite a grown-up way. 

The Senator welcomed them; but he looked 
again after the retreating Nancy. 



“you may he acquainted with a girl named 

MONTGOMERY ? ’ ’ Parte 232 . 







SENATOR MONTGOMERY 


233 

“Who is that pretty girl, Grace ?” he asked, 
pointing out the object of his interest. 

“ Pretty girl, indeed! ” ejaculated Cora, under 
her breath. 

“ Why it’s nobody but that Nelson — Nancy 
Nelson. A mere nobody.” 

“What name did you say?” demanded the 
senator, his green eyes very bright for a moment, 
and a little color coming into his face. 

“ Nancy Nelson.” 

“Who is she?” 

“ That’s what we all ask,” remarked his daugh- 
ter, with an unpleasant laugh. 

“ Why do you say that, Grace? ” 

“ Why, she’s a nobody. She’s got no friends, 
and no home — it’s a disgrace to have her here at 
Pinewood. I wish you’d say something to the 
Madame about her.” 

“ They tried to make me room with her,” said 
Cora Rathmore, boldly; “but I wouldn’t stand 
for that long.” 

The Senator looked grave. “ Come, tell me 
all about Nancy Nelson,” he enjoined them, and 
sat down on a neighboring bench to listen. 

Grace and Cora told their highly-colored ver- 
sion of the story circulated about Nancy during 
the first few weeks of her sojourn at Pinewood 
Hall. 


t 


234 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ Ard do tell Madame Schakael what you think 
of her letting such a girl into the school/’ begged 
Grace, as the Senator arose and started towards 
the Hall again. 

He did not say that he would. But to himself 
the Senator muttered, with puckered brow and 
half-shut eyes : 

“ Who would have thought it ! That girl here 
— right where I sent Grace ! I — I certainly shall 
have to see Gordon about this. Hang his impu- 
dence ! What does he mean by sending that girl 
to a place like this?” 


CHAPTER XXII 


IS IT A CLUE? 

The most beautiful sight she had ever seen! 
That was what Nancy Nelson enthusiastically 
called it when, from the end of the long line of 
girls, walking two by two, she saw the flower- 
crowned seniors winding from the Hall, through 
the sun-spattered grounds, to the old brick church 
on the highway, beyond the estate, where the 
baccalaureate sermon was always preached. 

No girl, she was sure, could ever be disloyal to 
Pinewood Hall, after having once seen the gradu- 
ation procession. And then, the graduating girls 
themselves! Why, they were all ready for col- 
lege ! 

How much they must know! Nancy sighed 
with envy, and hoped heartily that she would be 
able to remain at Pinewood long enough to be 
a chief figure in a similar spectacle. 

Corinne Pevay looked like an angel. And 
Carrie Littlefield read the valedictory. To the 
mind of the girl just finishing her freshman year, 
these great girls — real young ladies, now! — were 
235 


236 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

so far above her that it almost made her blink 
to look at them. 

At Higbee School class after class had been 
graduated above Nancy, and she had seen the day 
approach — even her own graduation — without 
much excitement. But this was an entirely dif- 
ferent occasion. 

She had something to look forward to this 
summer. At the break-up for the long vacation^ 
she was going to have just as much part in the 
bustle as anyone. 

Jessie Pease had already looked over her ward- 
robe, and there were several new summer dresses, 
including swimming and boating costumes. Mr. 
Gordon had sent the extra money needed without 
comment or objection. 

And now Nancy’s trunk was packed, and her 
bag, and with Jennie Bruce she was ready to take 
the first ’bus that left for the Clintondale station 
in the morning. 

How different from her coming to the school 
in September! 

She was at the head of her class. The fresh- 
men had given her an overwhelming vote for 
class president for the soph. year. And Corinne 
had prophesied that she would yet be captain of 
the West Side — when she grew to be a senior. 

Girls ran to kiss her before she got into the 


IS IT A CLUE? 


237 


’bus, and stood and waved their hands after her 
as it rolled away. And when she had arrived at 
the Hall, she stood on the porch in the rain with- 
out a soul to speak to her. Ah ! this change was 
enough to turn the head of even a sensible girl. 

However, Nancy was much too affectionate by 
nature and tender of other people’s feelings to be 
made haughty or vain by her schoolmates’ kind- 
ness to her. It continued to be a wonder to her 
how a “ mere nobody ” had managed to gain such 
popularity. 

And she was welcomed in Jennie’s home as 
though she really was one of the family. 

Jennie’s home was a lovely, rambling old house, 
standing well back from the High Street in its own 
grounds, and affording ample space for the young 
folk to have fun in innumerable ways. 

There was a lake not far away; and Mr. Bruce 
owned a pair of ponies that even the younger chil- 
dren could drive. There was a trip almost every 
day to the swimming place; then there were pic- 
nics, and visiting back and forth with other girls 
whom Jennie and her sisters knew. And nowhere 
did Nancy hear a word about her not being u just 
as good ” as her comrades. 

The mystery of her identity, however, was 
seldom buried very deep under other thoughts. 
And Jennie retained her interest in the puzzle, too. 


238 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Nancy had written to Scorch O’Brien to ar- 
range for a meeting; as the red-headed youth 
seemed too bashful to come out to Jennie’s house, 
the girls planned to meet him in the city. They 
got a most mysterious note in reply: 

“ Dear Miss Nancy: 

“ You and your friend meet me at 307 Payne 
Street on Saturday afternoon. You can whistle 
outside; I’ll hear you. Can’t see you at Old Gor- 
don’s office for fear of spies. Did you ever see 
the Gray Man? He and Old G. has had a fight 
about you. It was a peach ! They says when 
thieves fall out honest folks gets what’s coming 
to them. Mebbe you’ll get yours. 

“ Most respectfully yours, 

“ Scorch O’Brien.” 

Jennie’s big brother John, who had already 
taken some interest in Nancy’s mystery, took the 
girls to town with him. His employer, who knew 
Mr. Gordon, had never been able to get the 
lawyer to talk about Nancy Nelson, although he 
had started the subject with him several times. 

The girls did a little shopping for themselves, 
and some errands for Mrs. Bruce, and then had a 
nice luncheon. It was past noon then and they 
were sure that Scorch would be at home — for it 
was evidently his home address that he had given 
to them. 


IS IT A CLUE? 


239 


They asked a policeman how to find Payne 
Street and he kindly put them on a car which took 
the two girls to the corner of that thoroughfare. 
It was a street of small cottages, and empty lots, 
and goats, and many, many dirty-faced children. 
Some of these last ran after Nancy and Jennie and 
made faces at them as they sought out Number 
3 ° 7 - 

“ But as long as the goats don’t run after 
us and make faces, I don’t care,” declared 
Jennie. 

Just then one nanny looked over a fence and 
said “ Ba-a-a-a ! ” in a very loud tone, and Jennie 
almost jumped into the middle of the street. 

“Come out! Come on!” she cried, urging 
her friend onward. “ Goats are always butting 
in.” 

A derisive chorus of “ ba’s ” followed them as 
they hurried along the street. 

“ There’s 307 ! ” cried Nancy, pointing. 

The cottage in question was a rather neater- 
looking place than its neighbors. There was a 
fence which really was strong enough, and had 
pickets enough (if some of them were barrel- 
staves) to keep wandering goats out of the yard. 
There was a garden at the back, and a bit of grass 
in front, with a path bordered by half bricks 
painted with whitewash a dazzling white. 


2 4 o A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

The porch and steps were scrubbed clean, too; 
it might have been a sign of Mrs. O’Brien’s trade, 
that porch. 

There were ducks, and geese, and poultry, too; 
but all fenced off with wire from the front and 
from the garden. And the girls heard the 
hungry grunting of a pig in its sty. 

There was a good deal of noise within the 
house, too. The girls could hear childish voices 
in a great hullabaloo, a good-natured, but broadly 
Irish voice chiming in with them, and likewise 
a scampering across the floor which must have 
made the cottage rock again. 

“He’d never hear us whistle in the world!” 
giggled Jennie. 

“ How funny we’d look standing here on the 
street and whistling, anyway! ” replied Nancy. 

“ And then, I never could whistle,” confessed 
Jennie. “ Somehow I can’t get my lips to pucker 
right.” 

“Why! neither can I!” cried Nancy. “I 
didn’t think of that. We couldn’t signal to Scorch 
by whistling, anyway.” 

“ Unless w r e borrowed a policeman’s whistle — 
or a postman’s,” said Jennie. “ What’ll we do ? ” 

“ Come on and knock,” said Nancy. “ We can 
make them hear somehow.” 

Which proved to be true. The girls made 


IS IT A CLUE? 


241 

those inside hear at their first summons. Silence 
fell upon the O’Brien cottage on the instant. 

There might have been some whisperings and 
soft commands; but then, in a moment, a good- 
looking, black-haired girl, in a clean apron and 
with her sleeves rolled up over her dimpled elbows, 
opened the front door. 

“ You’re Norah O’Brien, I know,” said Nancy, 
putting out her hand. 

“ You’re a good guesser, Miss,” returned the 
girl, who might have been sixteen or seventeen. 
“ And who might you be — and the other pretty 
lady?” 

“ Why — didn’t Scorch tell you ” 

“ Sarsfield, do ye mane?” asked Norah, her 
eyes twinkling. 

“ I mean Scorch O’Brien,” declared Nancy. 

“ Patrick Sarsfield is his name,” declared 
Scorch’s big sister. “Here! P. Sarsfield 
O’Brien ! ” she shouted into the house. “ It’s 
coompany ye’ve got.” 

“ Gee ! ” drawled the voice of the red-haired 
youth. “ What did they come to the door for? ” 
and he made his appearance, looking very 
sheepish. 

“ How could you expect us to whistle, Scorch? ” 
demanded Nancy, while Jennie bubbled over with 
laughter. “ Girls can’t whistle.” 


242 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ I never thought,” admitted Scorch, shaking 
hands awkwardly with both visitors. 

“ Bring thim inter the house, P. Sarsfield,” said 
Norah. “Have ye no manners?” 

“ There’s too many kids,” said the tousled 
Scorch, who had evidently been playing with the 
younger children, too. 

“ I’ll shoo ’em out into the yard,” promised 
Norah, and went away upon this errand while 
Scorch ushered his visitors into the tiny front 
room, which was evidently kept shut up save 
when the priest came, or some special visitor. 

The girls sat down on the stiffly-placed chairs 
and looked about at the portraits of Mr. and Mrs. 
O’Brien when they were first married — he very 
straight and stern-looking in his policeman’s uni- 
form, with very yellow buttons, and Mrs. O’Brien 
with very red cheeks and much yellow jewelry 
painted into the picture by the artist at the 
bride’s request. Mrs. O’Brien had never owned 
any trinket of more value than her wedding 
ring! 

There was a wreath of everlastings in a glass 
case, which had lain on the good man’s coffin. 
And there was a framed “ In Memoriam ” card 
on the wall, together with a “ Rock of Ages ” 
worked on cardboard in red worsted by Norah 
herself, no doubt. 


IS IT A CLUE? 


243 


Everything was as clean as could be, however. 
And Nancy, on her part, was much more inter- 
ested in the change she saw in Scorch, than in 
anything else. 

“ Why, Scorch! how you’ve grown 1” she ex~ 
claimed. 

“ That’s in spite of the way they overwork me 
at the office,” he replied, grinning. 

“ And you’ve had that tooth put in! ” 

“ Yep. Ye see, missing that tooth, when I bit 
into anything it seemed like I was tryin’ to make 
a sandwich look like a Swiss cheese. It troubled 
my aesthetic taste. So I let the tooth carpenter 
build me another.” 

“And your hair stays lots flatter than it did,” 
declared Nancy. 

“ Yep. Sweet oil. It works all right.” 

‘‘Nonsense, Scorch! You talk just as slangily 
as ever.” 

“ But he writes a lot better than he did,” said 
Jennie, suddenly. “ Did you notice in his last 
letter?” 

“You’re practising, Scorch,” said Nancy. 

“ I’m goin’ to night school, Miss Nancy,” ad- 
mitted the boy, with a grin. 

“That’s a good boy! ” exclaimed Nancy. 

“ Well, learning is all right — even if a feller’s 
goin’ to be a detective,” declared Scorch, earnestly. 


244 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ And I expect you’re learnin’ a lot yourself, Miss 
Nancy?” 

“ Some,” returned his friend. 

“ She’s at the top of her class,” Jennie declared, 
proudly. “ Oh, she has us all beaten, Scorch.” 

“ Sure,” he agreed. “ I knowed how ’twould 
be. There ain’t nobody going to get the best of 
Miss Nancy.” 

“ Unless it’s that horrid Mr. Gordon,” sug- 
gested Jennie, bringing the conversation around 
to the subject uppermost in all their minds. 

“ Ha ! ” exclaimed Scorch, looking mysterious 
at once, and hitching his chair nearer to the girls. 
“ Were you on to what I said in my letter? ” 

“About the gray man? Yes!” cried Jennie. 

“ Did you ever see him? ” asked Scorch. 

“ I — I don’t know that I have,” said Nancy, 
slowly. 

“ He ain’t been snooping around that school? ” 

“ Why, I haven’t noticed anybody like that.” 

“ A big man all in gray. He’s some nobby 
dresser! I thought he was the President — or 
Secretary of State at least — when he came into 
the office and asked for Old Gordon. I takes him 
in at once. 

, “ Now, they knowed each other well, those two 
did. Old Gordon was startled and he tried to 
heave up out of his chair. But you know how 


IS IT A CLUE? 


245 


he is,” added Scorch, with scorn. “Takes him 
ten minutes to work his way out from between 
the arms when he wants to get up. Don’t know 
what he would do if there was a fire any 
time.” 

“Why, Scorch! ” admonished Nancy. 

“ Well,” said the boy, “ he tries to heave up, 
and can’t, and sings out: 

“‘Why, Jim!’ 

“ ‘ Hello, Hen,’ says the man in gray. 

“ I hadn’t shut the door — quite. Sometimes I 
don’t,” admitted the boy, with a wink. “ I hears 
the gray feller say : 

“ ‘ I just got back from Clintondale, Hen. 
What did you send that girl up there for, I want 
to know? ’ 

“ ‘What girl?’ asks Old Gordon. 

“ ‘ Nancy Nelson,’ says the gray man 

“ ‘ Sh ! ’ sputters Gordon. * Shut the door, Jim, 
if you’re here to talk about her.* 

“ But before the other feller shut the door I 
heard him say: 

“ ‘ Wouldn’t no other school but Pinewood 
Hall do for her?* and Old Gordon snaps right 
back at him: 

“ ‘ Nothing’s too good for her, Jim, and you 
know it.’ 

“ Well ! ” continued Scorch. “ I could have 


2 46 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

bit off the doorknob; I was so mad when they shut 
the door on me. I couldn’t hear another thing. 

“ The gray man was in there a long time. 
When he come out he looked mad, too. I didn’t 
hear Old Gordon’s buzzer for a long time, and 
so I slipped down to his door and tried it. 

“When I peeked in, what do you think?” 
asked Scorch, mysteriously. 

“ What was it? ” gasped Nancy. 

“I never could guess!” exclaimed the eager 
Jennie. 

“ The old man had his head down on the desk, 
and his shoulders was heavin’ like he was cryin’. 
Now, what do you know about that?” demanded 
the boy, with the air of one throwing a bomb. 
The girls were speechless with surprise. 


CHAPTER XXIII 


BACK TO SCHOOL AGAIN 

“That's the strangest thing I ever heard,” 
Jennie Bruce said, the first to break the silence. 
“ Do you really suppose he was crying, Scorch — 
or was he laughing?” 

“ Say ! ” returned the red-haired youth, “ Old 
Gordon never laughed in his life ! ” 

“ But why should he cry? ” asked Nancy, much 
disturbed. 

“ Ask me an easier one,” answered Scorch. 
“ It struck me all of a heap. I backed out and 
waited for him to show up. When he went out 
to lunch he looked no different from other times.” 

“ And I don’t see that what you’ve told us is 
a bit of good ! ” exclaimed Jennie, suddenly. 
“We don’t know who the gray man is.” 

“You ain’t never seen him, Miss Nancy?” 
asked the boy, anxiously. 

“ Not that I know of,” replied the girl. 

“ Well ! I tried to find out who he was, and 
nobody around the office seemed to know. He’d 
never been there before. But if he comes again 

247 


248 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

I’m goin’ to get on his trail,” declared Scorch, 
nodding emphatically. 

“How’ll you do that?” asked Jennie, quickly. 

“ 1 don’t know. But I’ll follow him out if I 
have to,” said Scorch. “ And he’ll have to be 
pretty smart to lose me” 

“ Don’t you do anything, Scorch, to get your- 
self into trouble,” admonished Nancy. 

“Shucks!” ejaculated Scorch. “I won’t get 
into trouble. Don’t you fear. But that gray 
man won’t get away from me again.” 

The girls remained a while longer, getting bet- 
ter acquainted with Norah, and with the brood of 
younger O’Briens. There was the livestock in 
the back yard to look over, too; and Norah made 
tea and cut a cake, doing the honors of the house 
because Mrs. O’Brien was not at home. 

44 She does her scrubbin’ at the offices Saturday 
afternoon instead of at night. Then we have her 
home Saturday evenings,” said Norah, proudly. 
“ And Patrick Sarsfield does not go to school 
Saturday evenings.” 

“Oh, say!” ejaculated the red-haired boy. 
“ Call me 4 Scorch.’ 4 Patrick Sarsfield ’ makes 
me feel top-heavy. I’d soon get round-shoul- 
dered carrying that around.” 

John Bruce met the girls at the station, to which 
Scorch escorted them in time for the afternoon 


BACK TO SCHOOL AGAIN 249 

train. Nancy shook hands with her champion 
warmly before they separated. 

“ You be a good boy and keep out of trouble,” 
she advised him. “ Maybe Mr. Gordon isn’t as 
bad as — as you think. He never refuses me any- 
thing, and I feel ashamed to doubt him so.” 

“ Say ! what did he ever give you but money? ” 
demanded Scorch. 

“ But that, you once told me,” said Nancy, 
laughing, “ was about the best thing in the world.” 

“ It’s good to have, just the same,” quoth 
Scorch. “ But perhaps havin’ folks is better. 
And if Old Gordon has hidden you away from 
your folks, Miss Nancy, he’d oughter be made 
to give you up to them.” 

“ That’s a new /dea, Scorch,” returned Nancy, 
reflectively. “ Do you suppose that I might have 
been stolen from my people for some reason? ” 

“ Maybe you were stolen by Gypsies ! ” cried 
Jennie. 

“ Old Gordon doesn’t look like a Gypsy,” said 
Scorch, slowly, “ nor yet the gray man I was 
telling you about.” 

“ Come on and get aboard,” said John Bruce, 
smiling. “ I wouldn’t worry my head about such 
things, if I were you, Nancy. We all like you 
quite as well as we should if you had a family a 9 
big as the Bruces’.” 


2 5 o A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

That was not the only time the girls saw Scorch 
O’Brien that summer; and on one occasion the 
entire O’Brien family — from the fat, ruddy-faced 
Mother O’Brien, down to Aloysius Adolphus 
O’Brien, the baby — came clear out to Holleyburg 
on the train, where they were met by the Bruces’ 
man, and Nancy and Jennie, with a two-horse 
beach-wagon and transported to the lake for a 
picnic. 

But Scorch — greatly to his disappointment — 
had nothing of moment to communicate to Nancy 
on that occasion, or on any other that summer. 
The “ gray man ” did not again appear at the 
offices and all he could say was that Mr. Gordon 
went on in his usual way. 

“ He lives in an old-fashioned hotel over on the 
West Side,” said Scorch, “ and I’ve been in his 
rooms two or three times. But it don’t look to 
me as though he could hide the papers there any- 
where.” 

“Hide what papers?” demanded Nancy. 

“ Why, there’s always papers hidden away 
that would tell the heiress all she wants to know — 
if she could get at ’em,” declared Scorch, nod- 
ding. 

“You ridiculous boy! You’ve got your head 
full of paper-covered story books ! ” exclaimed 
Nancy. “Did you ever hear his like, Jennie?” 


BACK TO SCHOOL AGAIN 251 

“ Maybe he’s right, just the same,” observed 
her chum, slowly. “ Mr. Gordon isn’t likely to 
tell you anything himself. If you ever find out 
about your folks it will be in some such way as 
Scorch says.” 

Bye and bye it was time to go back to Pine- 
wood Hall again. Nancy had remained the 
whole summer with the Bruces, and she had en- 
joyed every day of that time. Yet she was glad, 
too, to go back to her studies. 

“ And so would / be, if I had a chance of stand- 
ing anywhere near you in classes,” agreed Jennie. 
“ But I’m always falling down just when I think 
I’m perfect in a recitation.” 

But there was much more dignity in the bearing 
of both Nancy and Jennie when they approached 
Pinewood Hall on this occasion. They were full- 
fledged sophomores, and they could not help look- 
ing down with amused tolerance on the “ green- 
ies ” who were timidly coming to the school for 
the first time. 

It was “ great,” as Jennie confessed, to be able 
to tell “ those children ” where to go, and what 
to do, and to order them about, as was the soph, 
privilege. 

But when Nancy found that certain of her 
class were hazing the new-comers in a serious way, 
she took the class to task for it. She called a 


252 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

meeting and reminded them that it would dis- 
please both the new captains of the school — 
Mary Miggs on the West Side and Polly Hyams 
on the East — as well as Madame Schakael her- 
self, if hazing of the new girls continued. 

“ Let’s do unto others as we would have been 
glad to have others do to us when we came a 
year ago,” said Nancy. 

“Well, the sophs, drilled us, all right! ” cried 
Jennie, who was a bit obstreperous on this point, 
for she liked to play practical jokes on the younger 
girls. 

“ And so,” said Nancy, gravely, “ we know 
how mean it was of them. This class wants to 
have a better record than the class above it — eh? ” 

“Talk for yourself, Miss Nancy!” snapped 
Cora Rathmore. “ You’re taking too much upon 
yourself.” 

“ As usual, too,” agreed Grace Montgomery, 
with scorn. “ Just because you happen to be class 
president — * — ” 

“ And quite by a fluke,” interjected Cora. 

“ You needn’t suppose that you can boss us in 
every single particular. If I want to make one 
of these greenies ‘ fag ’ for me, I’m going to do 
it.” 

“We have always agreed to be governed by the 
majority, you know,” observed Nancy, softly. 


BACK TO SCHOOL AGAIN 253 

“ Let us put it to vote. If the bulk of the class 
believe it better and kinder to help these younger 
girls instead of making them miserable for the 
first few weeks they are at Pinewood, let us all 
agree to be governed accordingly.” 

“ Well, that’s fair,” said Jennie Bruce. 

“Oh, she knows she’s got the majority with 
her,” snapped Cora, shrugging her shoulders. 
“ The minority have no rights at all in this class.” 

“ I am glad — or would be so — if I believed I 
was so popular,” Nancy said, with some warmth. 
“ But I believe with the majority of us girls my 
suggestion is popular. It isn’t /.” 

Then she put the question and the Montgom- 
eryites were in a very small minority. 

Nevertheless, outside of class matters, Grace 
Montgomery was still something of a leader. 
She and Cora paid more attention to dress than 
other girls in the school. They spent more 
money on “ orgies,” too, and had hampers ar- 
rive from home more frequently. They were 
even more popular among the juniors than they 
were in their own class. 

And soon a certain number of the new girls at 
Pinewood Hall began to ape the manners and 
quote the sayings of Grace Montgomery. The 
present class of seniors paid little attention to 
Grace and her growing clique; but Nancy and 


254 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Jennie often spoke of the possibility of her having 
a large following before she was through her 
senior year. 

“ Unless she does something for which to be 
shown up before them all, the time will come when 
Grace Montgomery will divide the school. She’ll 
never have much influence in her own class,” said 
Jennie; “but in the school as a whole she will be 
a power if she can.” 

In athletics that fall, however, neither Grace 
nor Cora cut much of a figure. Cora tried hard 
for the school crew, but Miss Etching turned her 
back to the second boat for another year. 

To make Cora all the angrier, Nancy “ made ” 
Number 6 in the eight-oared shell. It was some- 
thing for the sophomore class as a whole to be 
proud of; for it was seldom that one of their 
number got into the “ varsity ” crew. 

But Cora did all she could to belittle Nancy’s 
triumph. She stood on the landing and sneered 
at the work of the crew, and especially at “ Num- 
ber 6 ” until one evening Jennie Bruce came up 
behind her, caught her by both elbows, and thrust 
her suddenly toward the edge of the float. 

“Ouch! Don’t! You mean little thing!” 
cried Cora. 

“ Mean? ” said Jennie, sharply. “ If I was as 
mean as you are, Cora Rathmore, I’d be afraid to 


BACK TO SCHOOL AGAIN 255 

go to sleep without a light in the room. Just 
think of being left alone in the dark with anybody 
as mean as you are ! ” 

“Think you’re smart! Ouch! Let go of 
me! ” 

“ You quit ragging Nance Nelson, or I’ll pitch 
you right into the river — now you see if I don’t! ” 
threatened Jennie. 

“I’ll tell Miss Etching on you!” threatened 
Cora, still struggling. 

“ Go ahead. And I’ll tell her the things you’ve 
said down here every time the school crew is out. 
You have a funny kind of loyalty; haven’t you, 
Cora? Pah!” 

“ Mind your own business ! ” snapped Cora, but 
rubbing her elbows where Jennie had held them 
like a vise. 

She was a little afraid of Jennie’s muscles, as 
well as of her sharp tongue. Jennie was not a 
heavy girl, but she was wiry and strong. 

This fall rowing was a particular fad of the 
Pinewood Hall girls. In the long evenings after 
dinner all but the freshman class were allowed to 
go out on the river until Mr. Pease blew the big 
horn at the boathouse to call the stragglers in. 

Some of the girls owned their own boats, too, 
for of course they could not use the racing boats 
except in practice hours. Others, who did not 


256 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

own boats, hired them of a boatman below the 
estate, near the railroad bridge. 

Jennie and Nancy pooled their pocket money 
and bought a light skiff — a flat-bottomed affair 
which was just the thing for them to paddle about 
in shallow water, and was “ seaworthy.” No 
ordinary amount of rocking could turn the skiff 
over. 

They often pulled into the still pools, or 
meadow ponds, opening into the river, and plucked 
water-lilies. Nancy never did this without re- 
membering her adventures before she came to 
Pinewood Hall — the occasion when she had helped 
save Bob Endress from drowning. 

Bob was now a lordly senior at Dr. Dudley’s 
Academy. Nancy had only seen him flashing 
past the girls’ boathouse in the Academy eight. 
Bob was stroke of his school’s first crew. Nancy 
often wondered if he had learned to swim yet. 

One evening when the two chums from Number 
30, West Side (they had held their old room for 
another term, as sophs often did at Pinewood 
Hall), arrived at the little dock where the private 
boats were kept, they saw that their own skiff was 
in the water. 

“Hullo!” exclaimed Jennie. “Some of the 
girls have been using the Beauty . What do you 
know about that?” 


BACK TO SCHOOL AGAIN 257 

They began to run. One girl popped up out 
of the boat, saw them, and immediately climbed 
out upon the dock. It was Grace Montgomery. 

“Well, will you look who’s here!” ejaculated 
Jennie. “ Who invited you to play in our yard, 
Miss?” 

“Oh, never mind, Jennie!” begged Nancy, 
pulling at her chum’s sweater. 

“ I’m not going to have anybody take our boat 
without permission. Who is that other one? 
Why, it’s Cora, of course! Get out of that!” 
commanded Jennie, much more harshly than 
Nancy had ever heard her speak before. 

“ Dear me ! I didn’t know it was your boat, 
Jennie,” said Grace, airily. 

“ Nor I,” chimed in Cora. “ You can be sure I 
wouldn’t have got into the sloppy old thing, if I 
had.” 

“ Go ’long, chile ! ” spoke Jennie, scornfully. 
“ It wouldn’t matter to you whose boat it was. 
Your appreciation of personal property is warped.” 

“ Nasty thing! ” snapped Cora. 

“ Just so,” returned Jennie. “ Come on, Nance. 
We’ll get a padlock for our boat-chain to- 
morrow.” 

When they had pushed off and were out of hear- 
ing of the girls on the dock, Nancy said, admonish- 
ingly: 


258 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ Why say things to stir them up? It does no 
good.” 

“ Oh, fudge! What does it matter? Do you 
suppose that I care if Grace or Cora ‘ have a mad 
on’ at me? Much!” and Jennie snapped her 
fingers. 

They were pulling out into the river. The sun 
was already below the hills; but the light was lin- 
gering long in the sky and on the water. The 
chums had an objective point in a little cove across 
the river, where splendid lilies grew. 

The evening boat from Clintondale down the 
river came in sight and the girls rested on their 
oars to let it pass. The little waves the small 
steamer threw off rocked their skiff gently. 

“ Goodness ! ” exclaimed Jennie, suddenly. 
“ This skiff is all wet. My feet are soaked.” 

“Why, what’s the matter?” asked Nancy. 
“ The water is over my shoes, too.” 

“ I bet those girls slopped some into the boat 
when they launched her,” declared Jennie, angrily. 

“ Wish we had a bailer. Why, Jennie ! the 
boat’s leaking ! ” 

But Jennie had already found that out. And 
she found where it was leaking. 

“The plug’s been pulled, Nance!” she ex- 
claimed. “See that bunch of rags floating? 
That’s what Cora Rathmore stuffed into the hole 


BACK TO SCHOOL AGAIN 259 

when she pulled out the plug. She knew the water 
would soon work them out.” 

“ But where’s the plug?” asked Nancy. 
u They took it away with them. It’s a mean 
trick! ” gashed her chum. “ Why, Nancy! The 
water is gaining fast. Here we are in the middle 
of the river and the skiff will sink under us before 
we can row to shore ! ” 


CHAPTER XXIV 


THE THANKSGIVING MASQUE 

Of course, both Jennie and Nancy could swim; 
but swimming with one’s clothes on, from the 
middle of Clinton River to the shore, would be no 
small feat. 

And there wasn’t time to throw off much of their 
clothing, for the skiff was sinking under them. 
Once the bunch of rags had been forced out of 
the hole where the plug had been, the water spurted 
in like a miniature fountain. 

The boat began to swing in the current, too. 
They had both drawn their oars inboard and the 
craft drifted at the mercy of the river. 

“What shall we do?” gasped Jennie, again. 
“ We’re go-ing-right-do-own ! ” 

“Not yet!” cried her chum, tearing off the 
little coat she wore. 

In a moment Nancy doubled up the sleeve and 
thrust it into the hole in the bottom of the boat. 
She forced it in tightly, and as it became wet and 
more plastic, she rammed it home hard. 

“ But that won’t last long,” objected Jennie. 

260 


THE THANKSGIVING MASQUE 261 


“ The water’ll force it out again. And what will 
we do with the water that is already in here?” 

Indeed, the girls were barely out of the wash 
of the water, and their feet and ankles were soak- 
ing wet. 

They dared not move suddenly, either; the gun- 
wales of the boat were so low that, if it pitched 
at all, the river would flow over the sides. 

“ Why ! it will sink any minute and leave us 
sitting here in the water! ” groaned Jennie, again. 

“ Take off one of your shoes — careful, now,” 
commanded Nancy. “ We can bail with them,” 
putting into practice her own advice. 

They managed each to remove one of the low, 
rubber-soled shoes they wore. But these took up 
so small an amount of water, although they bailed 
vigorously, that Jennie began to chuckle: 

“ Might as well try to dip the sea out with a 
pail, Nance! What a ridiculous position we’re 
in!” 

But it was really more serious than that. It was 
fast growing dark, and no matter how loudly they 
shouted, their voices would not reach to the land- 
ing. The wind was against them. 

On the other side of Clinton River, opposite the 
scene of their accident, were open fields and woods. 
Few people lived within sight; indeed, only two 
twinkling lights from house windows could they 


262 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

now see on that si'de, and both of those were far 
away. 

“ Do you suppose we could slip overboard with- 
out swamping the boat, and so lighten it?” de- 
manded Nancy. 

“What good would that do?” 

“ Then it wouldn’t sink and we could cling to 
the gunwales. It would keep us afloat.” 

“ Oh, that plug’s come out! ” gasped Jennie. 

It had. Nancy stooped and forced the cloth 
into the hole again; but her motion rocked the boat 
dangerously. A ripple came along and lapped 
right in, and the girls were almost waist deep ! 

“Oh, dear me!” wailed Jennie. “We might 
just as well be drowned as be like this. We are 
drowned from our waists down.” 

“ Nev — er — say — die!” gasped Nancy, strug- 
gling with the jacket-sleeve to make it stay in the 
hole. 

“ We’ve got to get out! ” cried Jennie. “ This 
is where we get off — even if it is a wet landing. 
If we’re out of the boat, it will only sink so that 
the gunwales are level with the water. Isn’t that 
so?” 

“ I believe so,” admitted Nancy. 

“ Then out we go,” said Jennie, working her 
way toward the bow. 

“ What you going to do? ” 


THE THANKSGIVING MASQUE 263 

“ Lighten the boat. You slide out over the 
stern. We’ve got to do it, Nance.” 

“ I guess that’s so,” admitted her chum. “ Do 
be careful, Jennie. And if the boat does sink, 
don’t lose your head. We can swim.” 

u Well, I can’t swim to shore in all these clothes. 
I wish I had loosened my skirts at the start. Oh, 
dear!” 

The daylight had drifted out of the sky and 
there was no moon. The stars shone palely and 
it seemed as though a mist had suddenly been 
drawn over the surface of the river. 

The lights of the steamboat had long since dis- 
appeared around the bend. There didn’t seem to 
be another pleasure boat on the river this evening. 
And yet there must have been a lot of the girls 
out, somewhere. 

Jennie and Nancy got their feet over the ends 
of the boat and slid carefully down into the water. 
Their skirts buoyed them up a bit; but they knew 
that once the garments were saturated, they would 
bear them down instead. 

“Are — are you all — all right, Nance?” gasped 
Jennie, from the bow, as the water rose about her. 
u Oh, oh! Isn’t it wet? ” 

“Cling to the boat, Jen!” begged Nancy, 
from the stern. “ I — I don’t believe it will 
sink.” 


264 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

And even as she spoke the skiff, lurching first 
one side and then the other, sank slowly down into 
the depths of the river. 

Both girls screamed. They came together with 
a shock and clung to each other in something like 
panic. And, so struggling, both dipped under 
water for a moment. 

But when they came up, Nancy held her chum 
off, and cried: 

“ Don’t do that again, Jennie ! If you have to 
dip, hold your nose. Let’s not lose our heads 
about this. We’ve got to swim for it! ” 

“ Swim! ” gasped Jennie Bruce. “ I feel as if 
there was a ton of lead around my legs. I can’t 
kick any more than the mule could with his legs 
tied!” 

“ Get rid of the skirts,” said Nancy, struggling 
to unfasten her own. “ You can do it — if you try. 
There ! mine’s gone.” 

“ Oh, my — blub ! blub ! blub ! ” came from poor 
Jennie, as she went under. 

Nancy reached and caught her by the hair. Both 
their caps had floated away. She dragged her 
chum to the surface and held her until she got her 
breath again. 

Meanwhile Nancy was trying to undo the fasten- 
ings of Jennie’s clothes; and she succeeded after 
a time. 


THE THANKSGIVING MASQUE 265 

“ Oh, dear, me ! ” she gasped. “ I never wished 
to be a boy so much before.” 

“ Well, even a boy would find himself somewhat 
mussed up here in the middle of the river,” sobbed 
Jennie. 

“ But he’d have a knife in his pocket, and could 
cut his clothing off,” returned Nancy, with some 
vigor. 

In these few moments that they had been out 
of the boat the current, of course, had carried 
them down stream. But now, partially relieved 
of their clinging garments, they wanted to strike 
out for shore. But which shore? 

“ I believe we’re nearer the westerly side,” said 
Jennie. 

“ If we swim over there we won’t know where 
to go to dry off and get clothes. And there’ll be 
an awful time at the school,” said Nancy. 

Just then the horn at the boathouse sounded 
mournfully across the water. It was first call for 
the scattered boats to return — half-past eight. If 
all the girls were not in by nine they had to ex- 
plain the reason to Miss Etching. 

“Well, then, shall it be the boathouse?” 
queried Jennie. 

“We’ve drifted a long way below it. See! 
there’s the bend,” said Nancy, rising to look. 
“ Let’s make for the nearest point on that side.” 


266 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“ Come on, then ! ” said Jennie, and side by side, 
but heavily, the two girls struck out. 

Neither was quite sure that she could swim that 
far under the present conditions. Yet they were 
too plucky to say so to each other. 

For at least five minutes they plugged away and 
then Nancy, rising up again, uttered a startled ex- 
clamation. 

“ What’s the matter? ” demanded Jennie. 

“ Why ! we’re below the point ! ” 

“The current’s taking us down stream!” 

“That’s it!” 

“Goodness me!” exclaimed Jennie. “We’ll 
land somewhere about at the Academy, if we don’t 
look out.” 

At that instant they both heard the swish of 
oars, or a paddle. In unison they raised their 
voices in a shout: 

“Help! This way!” 

They could not see the craft approaching, for 
the mist on the river had been growing thicker 
and thicker, all this time. But there was an an- 
swering cry: 

“I’m coming! Holler again!” 

“ Oh, it’s a man! ” gasped Jennie. 

“ It’s a boy! ” declared Nancy. 

“ Shout again! ” cried the voice in the mist. 

“ Well, I’m going to be saved if I’m not dressed 


THE THANKSGIVING MASQUE 267 

for company,” declared Jennie, and she raised her 
voice again: 

“ This way ! We’re in the water ! ” 

“Coming!” 

Then into sight flashed a ghostly craft, which 
came straight for them. 

“ Oh ! it’s only a canoe ! ” wailed Jennie. “ We 
can’t climb into a canoe.” 

“My goodness! It’s two girls!” ejaculated 
the person paddling the canoe. 

“ Mr. Endress ! ” exclaimed Nancy, recognizing 
the boy from Dr. Dudley’s Academy. 

“ What ? ” shouted Bob Endress. “ Is it Nancy 
Nelson ? ” 

“ And Jennie Bruce. We lost our boat. It 
sank,” explained Nancy, breathlessly. 

“ Each of you grab the gunwale of my canoe. 
Easy, now! ” admonished Bob. 

They did so, one on either side, astern. 

“ Now I can paddle you to shore. Just let your 
bodies float right out. It’s lucky I came along. 
The current’s so strong around this bend.” 

“ I never saw a boy so welcome before ! ” gasped 
Jennie, getting back her courage immediately. 

“ And now I can return your compliment, 
Nancy,” said Bob, laughing. “ You saved me 
from drowning, and if you hang on long enough 
I’ll manage to save you, I guess.” 


268 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


He could not paddle the canoe very swiftly with 
the weight of the two girls dragging it down; but 
in ten minutes they were in shore and knew that 
they were safe. 

“ We could wade in,” said Nancy, gasping a 
little for breath. 

“ Wait,” commanded the boy. “ Hadn’t I 
better take you right up to the landing? ” 

“Oh, mercy! no!” cried Jennie. “We want 
to run right home across the fields. The back 
door won’t be locked.” 

“ We’d better go to the gym. first and get 
skirts,” said Nancy, the practical. “ Maybe 
we can slip in then without anybody being the 
wiser.” 

“ How under the sun did you manage to sink 
that skiff of yours?” Bob demanded, showing 
thereby that he knew more about Nancy and her 
chum than Nancy had supposed. 

“ The plug came out,” said Nancy, shortly. 

“ Why didn’t you put it back? ” 

“It wasn’t an accident!” exclaimed Jennie. 
“ One of the girls drew the plug and just stuffed 
the hole with rags. We didn’t know it. Of 
course, the water forced the rags out when we got 
half-way across the river.” 

“ Why, that was criminal ! ” cried Bob, angrily. 
“ That was no joke.” 


THE THANKSGIVING MASQUE 269 

“ Well, we didn’t laugh ourselves to death about 
it,” agreed Jennie. 

“What girl did it?” 

“ I’d hate to tell you,” snapped Jennie. “ There 
were two of them in the trick, I’m sure. But I 
certainly will pay them off ! ” 

“ They ought to be punished. You might have 
been drowned,” declared Bob. 

But Nancy said nothing. She did not propose 
to discuss Grace Montgomery’s shortcomings with 
her cousin. 

The two girls got ashore in the semi-darkness, 
and thanked their rescuer again. 

“ I’ll ask after you to-morrow over the ’phone,” 
declared Bob. “ I hope you won’t get cold.” 

“Oh, goodness me! don’t ask,” cried Jennie. 
“ Then we will have to explain the whole business. 
And I don’t want to go before the Madame.” 

“ That’s right, Jennie,” agreed her chum. 
“ Please don’t ask after us, Mr. Endress.” 

“ Then let me know how you get along through 
Grace. I see her a lot,” said Bob. “ But you 
girls are never with her.” 

“Aw — well,” drawled Jennie, coming to 
Nancy’s rescue. “ You know, we girls go in 
bunches. Nancy and I chum together, and it’s a 
close corporation. We don’t often go about with 
other girls.” 


270 r A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Then they said “Good-night!” and ran off 
through the bushes. Their wet garments ham- 
pered them somewhat in running; but they came at 
last breathless to the gym. and Samuel had not 
yet locked up for the night. 

So they got into gym. togs — both blouses and 
skirts, — and managed to enter the Hall by the 
rear door of their wing and get up to Number 30 
without being caught by any teacher, or the Side 
captain. 

The wet clothes were flung out of the window 
and, very early in the morning, Nancy arose, 
slipped out of the house, and carried the garments 
to the drying yard. 

So they got over this adventure without the 
teachers being the wiser. There was a hue and 
cry about the lost skiff, however. 

“What are we going to say?” demanded 
Jennie, of her chum. “ You won’t let me go at 
Grace and Cora and make ’em pay for it. What’ll 
we do? ” 

“ Let folks think the skiff floated away from the 
landing. What do we care if they say we didn’t 
tie it?” returned Nancy. “It’s our loss; isn’t 
it?” 

“ But those girls ought to be made to pay for 
the skiff.” 

“ How would you make them pay? Cora never 


THE THANKSGIVING MASQUE 271 

has any money, anyway,” said Nancy, remember- 
ing the sum that her ex-roommate already owed 
her from the year before. “ And they’d both deny 
touching the plug, anyway. We can’t prove 
it.” 

“Well, I don’t care! I hate to have those 
girls get the best of us. I’ll think up some trick 
by which we can pay them back.” 

“ Nonsense, Jennie ! ” reproved Nancy. “ You 
wouldn’t be mean just because they are mean.” 

“ I don’t know but I would — if it wasn’t for 
you,” admitted her chum, sighing. 

But in the end nothing was done about the skiff 
and the girls’ adventure. The matter blew over. 
There was so much going on at Pinewood Hall 
that fall, and the sophomores were so very busy, 
that the loss of the boat soon ceased to be a topic 
of conversation — saving between the owners and, 
possibly, the two other girls who knew all about 
the incident. 

The seniors and juniors promised the school a 
very lively social season this winter. And of 
course the sophs, were “ in on it,” as Jennie said, 
to a degree. 

As early as October the big girls got permission 
to plan a dance, with the Academy boys invited, 
for Thanksgiving Eve. It was to be a masquer- 
ade, too, and that gave the girls a delightful time 


272 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

choosing costumes and — in some cases — making 
them at odd hours themselves. 

Those who would, might gather, twice a week, 
with Jessie Pease and learn to sew. Nancy and 
Jennie were faithful to this “ extra ” and both 
made their own costumes under Jessie’s sharp eye. 

Jennie was going to be dressed as an owl, and 
wear huge spectacles and carry an open book. 

“ I’d never look wise at any other time,” giggled 
the irrepressible. “ So I will do so now.” 

And in her fluffy gray and white garments, with 
the skirts drawn close around her feet and slit only 
a little way so that she could barely walk and 
dance, Jennie really did look too cute for anything. 

Nancy was costumed as a “ drummer girl ” — a 
brilliant uniform with knee skirt, long boots, a 
little, round, “ Tommy Atkins ” cap with chin- 
strap, and a little snare-drum at her hip that she 
really learned to beat. 

The big hall was cleared for dancing and deco- 
rated by the girls themselves with the loot of the 
autumn woods. No more brilliant affair, every- 
body declared, had been arranged since Pinewood 
Hall had become a preparatory school. 

Dr. Dudley’s boys marched over at eight 
o’clock, every one of them fancifully attired. 
Despite the fact that the tastes of the boys ran a 
good deal to costumes denoting the Soldier of ’76 


THE THANKSGIVING MASQUE 273 

and Blackbeard, the Pirate, the novelty and variety 
shown by the girls made the scene a delightful one. 

Nancy Nelson and her mates of the sophomore 
class were not likely to be wall-flowers this year, 
or to lack for partners. The former’s striking 
costume marked her out, too, and after the grand 
march, she was sought out by Bob Endress. 

“ Oh, I’m afraid I don’t dance well enough, Mr. 
Endress,” the girl said in a whisper, and blushing 
deeply. 

“ You do everything well, I believe,” declared 
he. “ Now, don’t disappoint me. I’ve been try- 
ing ever since that night I found you and your 
chum in the river, to get a talk with you. But 
you’re so shy.” 

“ I — I’m always busy,” replied Nancy. “ And 
— and you know the Madame is very strict about 
us talking with any of you boys.” 

“Wow! we won’t bite you,” laughed Bob. 
“ Besides, I meet Grace and Cora Rathmore often. 
I tried to pump them about your accident; but 
they declared they knew nothing about it. I guess 
you warned them not to tell.” 

Nancy had nothing to say to this, but she could 
not refuse to go on the floor with Bob, although 
she saw Grace, dressed to represent a gaudy tulip, 
glaring at them with blazing eyes from across the 
room. 


CHAPTER XXVi 


GETTING ON 

Jennie Bruce did not go home that Christmas. 
Instead, she remained at Pinewood Hall with 
Nancy and was “ coached ” for the after-New 
Year exams. So she was able to send home better 
reports for her first half-year’s work than she had 
had before. 

Nancy took to study naturally; it was a “ grind ” 
for Jennie, and she was frank to admit it. 

Nancy stuck to her books just as closely after 
Thanksgiving as she had before; but as a sopho- 
more she had more freedom than was usually 
granted to the freshies. Therefore she was able, 
if she wished, to enter more fully into the social 
gayeties of her classmates. 

And after the very successful masque on Thanks- 
giving Eve, she could not escape Bob Endress al- 
together. He was a nice boy, and Nancy liked 
him. Besides, there were two topics that drew the 
two together. 

Bob never got over talking about that August 
afternoon, that seemed so long ago, when Nancy 

274 


GETTING ON 


275 , 


had helped to rescue him from the millrace. On 
the other hand, Nancy was quite as grateful to 
him for saving her and Jennie from the river. 

So, as well as might be, Bob and Nancy were 
very good friends. Bob would be graduated in 
June, and at that same time Nancy would become 
a full-fledged junior. Bob was going to Cornell; 
but that was not too far away, as he often told 
her, for him to come back to Clintondale to see 
both the girls and boys there. 

The only thing that troubled Nancy about this 
semi-intimacy between herself and the Academy 
boy was the fact that Grace Montgomery was so 
angry. She seemed to have an idea that the only 
person who had any right to speak to her cousin 
was herself. 

Nancy was not so afraid to demand her rights 
as she once had been. If Grace and Cora scowled 
at her, and belittled her behind her back, Nancy 
had learned to go serenely on her way and pay no 
attention to them. 

What if they did say she was a “nobody?” 
Nancy knew that she was popular enough with her 
classmates to win the high position of class presi- 
dent twice in succession. 

“ Let the little dogs howl and snarl,” Jennie 
said. “What do we care?” 

Yet the slur upon her identity could always 


2 76 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

hurt Nancy Nelson. Many a night, after Jennie 
was sound asleep in her bed, Nancy bedewed her 
pillow with tears. 

She reviewed at these times all the important 
incidents in her short life. 

The few brief notes that Mr. Gordon had sent 
to her she treasured carefully. She could not ad- 
mire that peculiar gentleman; yet he was the one 
link that seemed to bind her to her mysterious 
fortune. 

She received characteristic notes from Scorch 
O’Brien, now and then; they got past the Ma- 
dame’s desk unopened because they were addressed 
on the typewriter, and purported to come from 
the office of Ambrose, Necker & Boles. 

So the weeks sped. Spring came and then the 
budding summer, and again the long line of white- 
robed girls walked the winding paths of Pinewood 
Hall. The school year seemed to have fairly 
flown and Nancy and her mates found themselves 
facing the fact that they were no longer sopho- 
mores, but juniors ! 

The Montgomery clique u got busy ” again and 
tried to balk the election of Nancy for a third 
time to the office of president of the class. To be 
president in junior year was just as good as an ap- 
pointment to the captaincy of a Side in senior year. 

But Nancy had kept on the even tenor of her 


GETTING ON 


277 


way. Her marks were just as good as ever, and 
she stood at the head of most of her classes. The 
teachers liked her and most of her own class con- 
sidered her a bright and particular star. So there 
was little chance of Grace and Cora accomplish- 
ing their ends. 

The graduating exercises at Pinewood occurred 
the day before that same ceremony at Dr. Dudley’s 
school. The older boys of the Academy were 
usually invited guests at the exercises of the Hall; 
and some of the first and second-class girls re- 
mained over a day after graduation to see their 
friends in the boys’ school graduated. 

Nancy and Jennie received each an engraved 
card requesting “ the honor of their presence ” at 
Clinton Academy, with Bob Endress’s name writ- 
ten with a flourish in the lower corner. 

So, although Nancy was going home with Jennie 
for the summer once more, they begged the Ma- 
dame’s permission to remain over for the boys’ 
graduation. 

And how angry Grace Montgomery was when 
she learned that Bob had invited Nancy and her 
chum ! Bob had stood well in his class — was quite 
the cock of the walk, indeed — and Grace wanted to 
show him off to the older girls as her especial prop- 
erty. She worked the cousinly relationship to the 
limit. 


278 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

And after the exercises, when Bob came down 
from the platform particularly to lead Nancy and 
Jennie to his parents and introduce them, Grace 
and Cora went away in anything but a sweet frame 
of mind. 

Mr. and Mrs. Endress spoke very kindly to 
Nancy. Bob, it seemed, had often spoken of the 
girl whose quick wit had saved him from the mill- 
race almost two years before. 

“ And you are in Grace Montgomery’s class ? ” 
observed Mrs. Endress. “ It is odd we have never 
heard Grace speak of you, Nancy. And where 
will you spend your summer? ” 

Nancy told her how kind the Bruces were to in- 
vite her for the long vacation. 

“ I hope we shall see you both,” said Mrs. 
Endress, nodding kindly to Jennie, too, “before 
fall. We are not so very far from Holleyburg, 
you know. Ah! here come Grace and the Sena- 
tor.” 

Nancy and her chum fell back. A tall man 
dressed in a gray frock coat and broad-brimmed 
hat — the garments so often affected by the West- 
ern politician — was pacing slowly up the aisle 
with Grace and Cora. 

He was in gray all over, from hat to spats, save 
that his tie had a crimson spot in it — a very beau- 
tiful ruby pin. 


GETTING ON 


279 

“ My goodness me, Nance ! The Man in 
Gray!” whispered Jennie, chuckling. 

“What’s that?” gasped Nancy. 

“ Why, you remember the man Scorch told us 
of?” 

“What man?” 

“ The man in gray who came to see your guar- 
dian, Mr. Gordon? ” 

“Oh! Well,” and Nancy recovered her com- 
posure. “ I guess Grace Montgomery’s father 
has nothing to do with me. But I have seen him 
before.” 

“You have?” returned Jennie, in turn sur- 
prised. 

“ Yes. Last year just about this time. He 
came to the Hall to see Grace. I wonder ” 

She did not finish. She wondered if the Sena- 
tor would remember her. He did. But to 
Nancy’s confusion he scowled at her as he passed, 
and did not speak. 

“My!” murmured Jennie in her chum’s ear.. 
“ He’s just as unpleasant as his daughter; isn’t 
he ? I guess Grace comes by her mean disposition 
honestly enough ! ” 


CHAPTER XXVI 


MR. GORDON AGAIN 

Once that summer Nancy plucked up courage to 
go in to Cincinnati from Jennie’s home, and called 
upon Mr. Gordon. She did not tell him to expect 
her, but bearded the lion as she had once before. 

Jennie went with her, of course; only she re- 
mained waiting in a tea-room near the big office 
building where the lion had his lair. Even Scorch 
was amazed to see Nancy Nelson, dressed in her 
best and outwardly composed, walk into the outer 
office of Ambrose, Necker & Boles. 

“ Such a shock! ” gasped Scorch, pretending to 
faint away in his chair beside the gate in the rail- 
ing. “And, say! Miss Nancy, how tall you’re 
getting! ” 

“ So are you, Scorch,” she told him, holding out 
her hand. 

“ And good-looking — My eye ! ” 

“ Your hair is a whole shade darker, Scorch.” 

“ You couldn’t say nothing handsomer, Miss — 
not if you tried for a week,” declared the office 
boy, shaking hands vigorously. “ What’s turned 
280 


MR. GORDON AGAIN 281 

up? Are you going to crack the whip over Old 
Gordon? ” 

“How you talk, Scorch! You mustn’t be so 
disrespectful. And why should I crack any whip 
over Mr. Gordon? ” 

“ You will when you get the best of him — 
eh?” 

“ I certainly shall not. He — he’s been very 
kind to me, as far as I know.” 

“ Go in and see if he’s kind now,” grinned the 
red-haired one. 

“ Oh, no, Scorch! You announce me.” 

“ Yah ! you’re too easy on him,” growled Scorch, 
and went off to do as he was bid. When he came 
back he didn’t look very pleasant. 

“ He says you can come in,” snapped Scorch. 

“What’s the matter?” asked Nancy, a little 
fearfully. 

“ He acts like a bear with a sore head trying 
to open a honey tree. He’ll eat you alive, Miss 
Nancy.” 

“ All right. The banquet might as well begin 
right now,” returned the girl, bound not to show 
how shaky she really was. 

So she walked directly to Mr. Gordon’s door, 
knocked lightly, and without waiting for any en- 
couragement, walked in upon the big man in the 
armchair before the flat table. 


282 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


Again he was silent, but Nancy knew that he 
was looking at her in the mirror. Nancy was 
very glad, for a moment, that she was looking her 
best. She flushed a little, took another step for- 
ward, and said: 

“ How do you do, Mr. Gordon? ” 

“What do you want now?” demanded the 
lawyer, ungraciously. 

“ I want you to see me and tell me if you are 
satisfied with my progress, sir,” she said, boldly, 
as she had intended. 

“ Humph ! I receive reports from the woman 
who runs that school.” 

“ But you don’t know how I look — how much 
I’ve grown.” 

“ Come around here, then, and let’s look at 
you,” he growled, although he had been staring 
at her, she knew, since the moment she entered 
the office. 

His big face was quite as expressionless as it had 
been nearly two years before when she first remem- 
bered having seen it. If the little eyes showed 
any expression when she first entered it was now 
hidden. 

“ You look like a well-grown girl — for your 
age,” he said, with some hesitation. “ What do 
you want? ” 

“To know if you can tell me anything more 


MR. GORDON AGAIN 283 

about myself — or my people — or what is to be- 
come of me when my schooling is done? ” 

“ I can tell you nothing,” he replied, his brows 
drawing together. 

“ I have learned typewriting, and I am excellent 
in spelling, and Miss Meader is teaching me sten- 
ography,” she said, simply. “ If — if the money 
should — should stop coming any time, I thought 
I would better know how to go about supporting 
myself.” 

“ Ha ! ” He stared at her then with some 
emotion which sent a quick wave of color into his 
unhealthy cheek. 

“What’s that for?” he demanded, at last. 

“ What is what for, sir? ” 

“ Your getting ready to earn your livelihood? ” 

“You say you do not know anything about the 
source of my income. It may stop any time.” 

“Well?” 

“ Then wouldn’t it be necessary for me to go 
to work?” 

“ You wouldn’t want to take money from me, 
then?” he snapped. 

“ Why, I — I — You say you’re not even my 
guardian. I’ve no reason to expect anything from 
you if the money stops coming. Isn’t that so?” 

“Independent — eh?” he said, with a brief 
chuckle. 


284 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ I hope to be able to get along when I have 
to.” 

" When you have to?” 

“If I have to, then,” she said, nodding. 

“Well! Maybe you’re right. No knowing 
what might happen,” he said, as though ruminat- 
ing. “ Say ! Anybody ever talk to you about 
this money I have to spend on you? ” 

“ No-o, sir. Only my chum and I talk about 
it,” said Nancy, slowly. 

“ Curious, I suppose?” 

“Yes, sir,” replied Nancy, slowly. “And yet, 
it is more than curiosity. Suppose my — mother 
was alive — or, my father ” 

“Ha!” 

Mr. Gordon passed a big hand over his big 
face. He smoothed out something there — either 
a wry smile or a spasm of pain. 

“ Suppose, instead, you had a bad-tempered 
step-mother, or a drunken brute of an uncle, or a 
miser of a grandfather, or some other evilly-con- 
ditioned relative. Wouldn’t you rather be as you 
are than to know such relatives?” 

He looked at her sharply. 

“ We-ell — yes — perhaps ” 

“Ha! you don’t know how well off you are,” 
grunted Mr. Gordon. “Well! I’m busy. What 
more do you want?” 


MR. GORDON AGAIN 285 

“ No — nothing, sir,” said Nancy, disappoint- 
edly. 

“Want some more money for your vacation? 
Those Bruce people must be very fond of you to 
keep you so long for nothing.” 

“ They are very kind.” 

“ There is money here for you if you want it,” 
said the lawyer, carelessly. “ You want noth- 
ing?” 

“ I — I’d like to see Miss Trigg again. She was 
kind to me — in her way.” 

“ Who is Miss Trigg? ” he demanded. 

Nancy explained. He reached into his pocket, 
selected some bills, and gave her more money than 
she had ever had at one time before. 

“ Go on back there to Malden and see your old 
teacher, if you like. Take the Bruce girl with 
you. Now, good-bye. I’m busy.” 

He was just as brusk and as brief of speech as 
he had been before. Nancy went away, again 
deeply disappointed. But she and Jennie went to 
Malden that week and visited Miss Trigg at Hig- 
bee School. Miss Prentice was with a party visit- 
ing the Yosemite; but poor Miss Trigg never got 
away from the Endowment. 

The good, wooden, middle-aged woman was 
really glad to see the girl who had spent so many 
tedious summer vacations in her care. She tried 


286 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


to be tender and affectionate to Nancy; but the 
poor lady didn’t know how. 

The girls had a nice time about Malden, how- 
ever. Nancy took her chum to the millpond, 
where the water-lilies grew, and showed her where 
Bob Endress had come so near being drowned in 
the millrace. 

Jennie grew very romantic over this place. 

“ Just think, Nance ! Suppose, years and years 
from now, after you’ve finished at college, and 
Bob Endress has got through college, too, you 
should come here to see Miss Trigg, and he should 
come here, too, and you should meet right here 
walking in this path. 

“ Wouldn’t that be just like a story-book? ” 

“Nonsense, Jen! ” exclaimed Nancy, laughing. 

But sometimes, after all, the story books are 
like real life. And if Nancy had had fairy glasses 
that she might look ahead the “ years and years ” 
Jennie had spoken of, how amazed she would have 
been to see two figures — identical with her own 
and Bob’s — walking here in the twilight ! 

But girls of the age of Nancy Nelson and Jennie 
Bruce are usually much too hearty of appetite, and 
wholesome of being, to be romantic — for long at a 
time, anyway. 

The chums were as wild as hares that summer. 
They ran free in the woods, and went fishing with 


MR. GORDON AGAIN 287 

Jennie’s brothers, and 44 camped out ” over night 
on the edge of the pond, and learned all manner 
of trick swimming, including the removal of some 
of their outer clothing in the water. 

44 We’re not going to be caught again as we 
were there in Clinton River, when our boat sank,” 
declared Nancy, and Jennie agreed. 

When they went back to Pinewood Hall they 
were as brown as Indians, and as strong and wiry 
as wolves. Miss Etching complimented them on 
the good the summer seemed to have done them. 

Now came the time when Nancy Nelson and 
her chum 44 went higher ” in more ways than one. 
They were full-fledged juniors, and they had to 
give up old Number 30, West Side, which they 
both loved, to incoming freshies. 

They drew Number 83 — a lovely room, much 
larger than their old one and more sumptuously 
furnished. It had a double door, too, and the 
walls were almost sound-proof. 

44 What a lovely room to study in ! ” cried 
Nancy. 

44 And a great one to hold 4 orgies ’ in,” whis- 
pered Jennie, her eyes twinkling. 

So they determined, a week after school opened, 
to have 44 a house-warming.” Nancy had a good 
part of her spending money, given to her by Mr. 
Gordon during vacation, left in her purse. They 


288 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


invited twenty of their closest friends of the junior 
class and, as Jennie expressed it, “ just laid them- 
selves out ” for a fine spread. 

There was to be fudge, too, which Nancy had 
the knack of making. The chums had a chafing 
dish hidden away, and this was brought forth and 
the ingredients made ready, while Nancy hovered 
over the dish like a gray-robed witch. 

“Do you know what Cora Rathmore said?” 
chattered one of the visitors. 

“ Everything but her prayers ! ” declared Jennie, 
with sarcasm. 

“ No, no! about this racket to-night.” 

“ Didn’t know she knew we were going to have 
a house-warming,” said Jennie, looking up quickly. 
“I hope not!” 

“ She does know,” said another girl. 

“ Then somebody must have told,” declared 
Nancy, warmly. “ We tried to keep it very quiet.” 

“ And from Cora, too ! ” said Jennie, shaking 
her head. 

“Well! she said you were just too mean for 
anything when you did not ask her — and she right 
on this corridor,” said the first speaker. 

“Well, wouldn’t that jar you?” commented 
Jennie Bruce. 

“ And she said she hoped you’d get caught,” 
pursued the other girl. 


MR. GORDON AGAIN 289 

“ Wow, wow, says the fox! ” exclaimed Jennie. 
“ What do you think of that, now, Nance ? ” 

“ I think if we are caught we’ll know whom to 
blame it to,” responded her chum, decidedly. 

“ My goodness me ! Do you suppose she would 
be so mean? ” cried another of the visiting juniors. 

“ There’s nothing too mean for Cora to try,” 
answered Jennie. 

“ And I saw her outside her room just as I 
came in here ! ” exclaimed another girl. 

“Oh, me, oh, my!” cried Jennie. “I’ve got 
to go and see to this.” 

She dashed out of the room, leaving the other 
girls in a delightful tremor. She was gone but a 
moment. 

“Oh, girls! Scatter!” she gasped, when she 
stuck her head in at the door again. “ Cora’s out 
of her room and there’s somebody coming up the 
lower flight.” 

“ The Madame herself! ” gasped Nancy. 

The other girls grabbed handfuls of the good 
things, and ran. The fudge was not quite done. 

“ Quick ! Out of the window with it ! ” gasped 
Jennie, seizing the handle of the pan. 

“But she’ll smell it!” wailed Nancy. 

“ Will she? Not much! ” declared Jennie, and 
grabbing a rubber shoe from the closet held it for 
thirty seconds over the flame of the alcohol lamp. 


290 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Nancy, meanwhile, had been hiding away all 
the goodies. The candy, pan and all, had gone 
out of the window. Nothing but the awful stench 
of the rubber shoe could be smelled when the 
lights went out, and the girls hopped lightly into 
bed. 

“ Rat, tat, tat ! ” on the door. 

Jennie yawned, rolled over, and yawned again. 

“ Rat, tat, tat! ” 

“ Oh, yes’m ! ” cried Jennie, bouncing up. 

“Nancy Nelson! Nancy Nelson’s wanted!” 
exclaimed the sleepy voice of Madame Schakael’s 
maid, who slept downstairs. 

“Oh, dear, me! What’s happened?” de- 
manded Nancy, unable to carry out the farce now. 
This was not what the girls had expected. 

“ Wanted down in the office, Miss. Telegram. 
The Madame wants to see you right away.” 

The maid went away. 

“What do you suppose has happened?” de- 
manded Nancy of her chum. 

“ It isn’t anything about fudge,” groaned Jennie. 
“ I’m sorry I told you to throw the fudge out of 
the window. And I’ve spoiled a perfectly good 
rubber!” 

“ I must run down. Come with me, Jen ! ” 

“ All right,” agreed her chum, and together the 
two girls in their flannel robes scuttled out of 


MR. GORDON AGAIN 291 

Number 83 and down the two flights to the lower 
hall. 

There was a light in the principal’s office. 
When Nancy and Jennie went in Madame Schakael 
was sitting at her broad desk. It was not yet 
midnight. 

“ I was sorry to break up your party, Nancy,” 
said the little lady, with a quiet smile. “ But it 
seemed necessary.” 

“ Oh, Madame ! did you know ” 

“ I was kindly told by one of your classmates,” 
said the Madame, grave again. “ I am sorry it 
so happened. I do not encourage meannesses of 
any kind at Pinewood Hall. The tattler is one of 
the most abominable of our trials. 

“ As for the breaking of the rules by girls who 
wish to stuff themselves with goodies after hours, 
I have little to say. A junior who is president of 
her class, and on the road to being one of our most 
prominent pupils, knows best what she wishes to 
do.” 

“ Oh, Madame ! Forgive me ! ” begged Nancy, 
greatly troubled. And even Jennie saw nothing 
humorous in the incident. 

“ You are forgiven, Miss Nelson,” said Ma- 
dame Schakael, cheerfully. “ I expect, however, 
my junior and senior girls to help rather than hin- 
der the general deportment of the school. And 


292 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


‘ orgies ’ after hours do not set the younger girls 
a good example. 

“ However,” said the principal, kindly, “ this 
was not my object in calling you down, as I said 
before. A telegram has arrived for you. I do 
not understand it, but perhaps you will. Here is 
the evening paper — it in part solves the mystery. 
But who, my dear, signs himself or herself 
‘Scorch’?” 

“ Scorch! ” gasped both Nancy and Jennie to- 
gether. 

The Madame pushed the yellow slip of paper 
toward the startled Nancy. She read at a glance 
what it contained: 

“ Come to Garvan’s Hotel at once. G. in bad 
way. See P. & O. accident. — Scorch.” 

“ Scorch is Mr. Gordon’s office boy,” said 
Nancy, trembling. 

“ And ‘ G.’ stands for Mr. Gordon,” whispered 
Jennie, looking over her chum’s shoulder. 

The Madame had rustled open the paper and 
now displayed the front page to the eyes of the 
girls. Spread upon it was the account of a terrible 
accident on the P. & O. Railroad. At the top of 
the list of injured, printed in black type, was : 

“ Henry Gordon, lawyer, Cincinnati, seriously.” 


CHAPTER XXVII 


THE MAN IN GRAY AGAIN 

“Do you understand it, Nancy?” asked the 
principal, quietly. 

“ Oh, yes, Madame ! ” 

“ I suppose it is natural for them to send for 
you if your guardian is hurt?” 

“ Scorch would be sure to send for me,” whis- 
pered the girl, nodding. 

“Scorch?” 

“ Yes, ma’am.” 

“ A very peculiar name, Nancy.” 

“ He — he is a peculiar boy. But I know him. 
I have been to his home. He is my friend.” 

“And Garvan’s Hotel?” 

“ Is where Mr. Gordon lives. He is a bache- 
lor.” 

“ Ah ! Then I presume it is all right. But to 
go to Cincinnati at night — there is a train in an 
hour ” 

“Dear Madame Schakael!” cried Jennie. 
“ Let me go with her. I’ll take care of her.” 

“ She’s better able to take care of you, I think, 

293 


294 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Miss Flyaway,” observed the Madame, with a 
smile. 

“ We’ll take care of each other, then,” said Jen- 
nie, promptly. “ I’ll wire my father, or my 
brother John. They’ll come in to the city to 
meet us to-morrow morning.” 

“ That may be a good way to handle the mat- 
ter,” said the principal, accepting Jennie’s sugges- 
tion with relief. “ Miss Nelson should go at 
once, I believe. I’ll ’phone Samuel at the stables 
and have him here at the door with the light cart 
before you girls can possibly get ready. Each of 
you pack a bag — and pack sensibly. Be off with 
you ! ” commanded the little woman, handling the 
matter with her customary energy, once her de- 
cision was made. 

Nancy and Jennie ran up to their room once 
more. The whole house was still now, especially 
on the junior floor. 

Only they thought they saw Cora Rathmore’s 
door ajar. 

“ That’s the nasty cat who told ! ” hissed Jennie, 
as she and her chum began to dress. 

“ Never mind. We won’t do it again, Jennie. 
We were wrong.” 

“ I suppose we were. But, Nance! ” 

“ What is it, dear? ” 

“ I hate like time to have to be an example for 


THE MAN IN GRAY AGAIN 295 

the greenies and sophs.,” wailed Jennie, cramming 
things into her traveling bag quite recklessly. 

The girls were ready for their strange journey 
in twenty minutes. There was no dawdling over 
dressing on this occasion. When they returned 
to the Madame’s office Samuel was just bringing 
the dog-cart to the door. 

“Are you warmly dressed, girls?” 

“ Yes, indeed, Madame.” 

“ Have you sufficient money? ” 

“ I have nearly ten dollars,” said Nancy. 

“ And I have half as much,” added Jennie. 

“ Here is twenty more,” said the Madame, put- 
ting it into Nancy’s hand. “ Your guardian, Mr. 
Gordon, has always left a sum for emergencies 
in my hand. It seems he has been very liberal. I 
hope, Nancy, that you will find him not so seriously 
injured as the circumstances seem to suggest.” 

She kissed them both warmly and went to the 
hall door with them. 

“ Get their tickets and see them aboard the 
train. Speak to the conductor about them, 
Samuel,” she said to the under gardener. 

“ Indeed I will, Madame,” replied the good 
fellow. 

As they rattled down to the lodge gates, the 
door of the little cottage opened and Jessie Pease 
hurried out in her night wrapper. 


296 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

11 Wait ! Wait, Samuel ! ” she called, and held 
up a little basket. “ You’ll be hungry on the 
train, girls. Some chicken sandwiches, and olives, 
and odds and ends that I managed to pick up 
after the Madame telephoned to me about your 
trouble. 

“ I hope it isn’t so bad as it looks, Nancy. And 
take care of her, Janie — that’s a good lassie! ” 

“ Oh ! aren’t folks just good! ” exclaimed 
Nancy to her chum, as Samuel drove dn. “ It 
just seems as though they do like me a little.” 

“Huh! everybody’s crazy about you, Nance! 
You ought to know that,” returned Jennie. “ I 
don’t see what a girl who’s made so many friends 
needs of a family — or of money, either. Don’t 
worry.” 

But Nancy wiped a few tears away. Never 
before had she appreciated the fact that here at 
Pinewood Hall she had made many dear and 
loving friends. “ Miss Nobody from Nowhere ” 
was just as important as anybody else in .the whole 
school. 

Samuel drove almost recklessly through the 
streets of Clintondale in order to make the night 
train that stopped but a moment at the station. 
They were in good season, however, and the man 
put them, with their bags and the basket, aboard. 

It would not have paid to engage sleeping 


THE MAN IN GRAY AGAIN 297 

berths at that hour. The two girls had comfort- 
able seats, and of course, were too excited to 
wish to sleep. Jennie proceeded to open the 
lunch basket at once, however. 

“ No knowing when we’ll get a chance to eat 
again,” declared Nancy’s lively chum, who was 
enjoying to the full the opening of this strange 
campaign. 

What should they first do when they reached 
the city? Would the hotel be open so early in 
the morning? Would Scorch be at the station 
to meet them? 

And this question brought Nancy to another 
thought Scorch had not been communicated 
with. 

So she wrote a reply to his message, saying that 
she and Jennie were coming to Cincinnati and 
were then on the train, and had the brakeman 
file it for sending at the first station beyond Clin- 
tondale at which the train stopped. 

She addressed it to Scorch O’Brien’s home, be- 
lieving that it might reach him more quickly in 
that way. She did not suppose that the red- 
haired youth would be allowed to remain at 
Garvan’s Hotel over night. 

As it chanced, it was 2 very good thing Nancy 
Nelson sent this message, and addressed it as she 
did. But, of course, neither she nor Jennie Bruce 


298 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY. 

suspected how important the matter was at the 
time. 

And, within a few minutes, something else 
gripped the attention of the girls. They were 
discussing Jessie’s chicken sandwiches, “ and other 
odds and ends,” when a man walked down the 
aisle of the rocking coach toward them. 

“Oh, look, Nance!” whispered Jennie. 

Nancy looked up. The towering figure of a 
man dressed in a gray suit, with hat and gloves 
to match, stopped suddenly beside them. It was 
Senator Montgomery, Grace Montgomery’s 
father. 

“Hul*/o/” he muttered, evidently vastly sur- 
prised to see the girls in the train bound for Cin- 
cinnati. 

“ How do you do? ” said Nancy, softly. 

“Yes! you’re the girl. I thought I was not 
mistaken,” spoke the Senator, and although he 
frowned he seemed to wish to speak pleasantly. 
“You go to the same school as my daughter?” 

“ Yes, sir.” 

“ Pinewood Hall? ” 

“Yes, sir,” repeated Nancy. 

“ What is your name? ” 

“Nancy Nelson.” 

“ I thought I could not be mistaken.” The 
frown was gone from his face now and his sly 


THE MAN IN GRAY AGAIN 299 

eyes twinkled in what was meant to be a jovial 
way. “You girls are not running away, I sup- 
pose? ” 

“ Oh, no, sir,” said Nancy, timidly. 

“What is the matter, then? ” he asked, quickly. 
He held a folded paper in his hand which he had 
evidently been reading. 

“ My A gentleman who looks after me 

has been hurt and I am going to him,” responded 
Nancy, hesitatingly. “They have telegraphed 
for me.” 

It seemed as though the Senator’s face paled. 
“You don’t mean to say he sent word to you?” 
he demanded. 

“ Oh, no ! not Mr. Gordon.” 

The Senator’s face became suddenly animated 
again. He smote one hand heavily upon the 
chair back. 

“Not my old friend, Henry Gordon — a law- 
yer?” 

“ Yes, sir.” 

“ I saw he was hurt. Why! I myself am going 
to Cincinnati for the special purpose of seeing if 
he really is seriously ill ! ” 

“Indeed, sir?” 

“ Quite so,” declared the Senator. “ And he 
sent for you? I didn’t know he had a relative 
living, my dear.” 


3 oo A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ No,” explained Nancy. “ It was Scorch who 
sent for me.” 

“ Scorch? ” 

“ Mr. Gordon’s office boy.” 

“ Humph ! ” 

“ And I am not related to Mr. Gordon,” ex- 
plained Nancy, wishing to be perfectly open and 
aboveboard. “ But Mr. Gordon has always 
looked after me and — and I didn’t know but I 
might be of some use to him if he is alone and 
injured.” 

“ Ahem ! ” returned the Senator, grimly. “ I 
do not know that I quite approve. I cannot un- 
derstand what your principal was thinking of 
when she let you two girls come off alone on such 

an errand. But Ahem ! I will see you when 

we arrive at Cincinnati.” 

Jennie had not said a word during this con- 
versation. She waited until Senator Montgom- 
ery had gone along the aisle and was out of ear- 
shot. Then she seized Nancy’s arm suddenly. 

“ I’ve got it! ” she whispered. 

“Ouch! Got what?” demanded Nancy, 
striving to free her arm. 

“I see it all!” 

“ Then let me see a little of it, Jennie. And, 
goodness me, dear! don’t pinch so. What do 
you mean ? ” 


THE MAN IN GRAY AGAIN 301 

“ Do you know who that man is?” demanded 
Jennie, in an awed whisper. 

“ Of course. He’s Grace Montgomery’s 
father.” 

“ Yes! ” cried Jennie, impatiently. “ But who 
else ? ” 

“ Why— why ” 

“ I don’t understand why we did not see it be- 
fore ! ” exclaimed Jennie, mysteriously. “ At any 
rate you ought to have remembered it when Scorch 
was talking that day.” 

“ I really wish you would say what you mean, 
Jen,” said her chum. 

“ That man — that Senator Montgomery — who 
knows your Mr. Gordon so well and says he is 
hurrying to him now ” 

“Well?” asked the wide-eyed Nancy. 

“ That fellow is the man in gray of whom 
Scorch told us so long ago. Don’t you remem- 
ber? The man who came to Mr. Gordon and 
seemed to object because he had sent you to school 
at Pinewood Hall?” 

Nancy was stricken dumb for the moment. 
Scorch’s description of the mysterious man who 
had left Mr. Gordon in tears came back to her 
mind now, clearly. 

“ The man in gray,” repeated Jennie, nodding 
her curly head vigorously. 


CHAPTER XXVIII 


SCORCH “ ON THE JOB ” 

“ Oh, dear! Do you suppose that can be pos- 
sible?” Nancy demanded, finally. 

“ You know I’m right,” Jennie returned, firmly. 

“ It — it might be another man.” 

“ Two big men, who look important, and who 
both dress so peculiarly?” 

“ We-ell! ” 

“ It’s he, all right,” declared Jennie, vigorously. 
“ And he knows as much about you as Gordon 
does.” 

“ Do you think so? ” 

“ But he isn’t as kindly-intentioned toward you 
as even Old Gordon. I know by the look he 
gave you as he went away.” 

“But Grace Montgomery’s father!” gasped 
Nancy. 

“ Maybe you’re related to Grace,” ventured 
Jennie, with a sudden chuckle. “ And after all 
the stuff she’s said about you ’round Pinewood, 
too!” 

“ Oh, I hope not! ” exclaimed Nancy. 

“ Don’t want Grace for a relation — eh? ” 


302 


SCORCH “ ON THE JOB ” 303 

‘‘Dear, me! No!” cried Nancy, quite hon- 
estly. 

This amused Jennie immensely; but soon she 
became more serious and the two girls discussed 
the possibilities of the matter most of the way to 
Cincinnati. 

Mr. Montgomery did not come back to them. 
They were free, therefore, to wonder what he 
would do when they reached the city. 

“ Perhaps he won’t want you to see Mr. Gor- 
don,” suggested Jennie. 

“But why?” 

“ Why is he so much interested in your affairs? ” 

“ Do we know that he is?” demanded Nancy. 

“ Well! Scorch heard him ” 

“ If it really was the same man.” 

“ Dear me! ” said Jennie, wearily. “ You are 
such a Doubting Tomaso ” 

“ I don’t believe that’s the feminine form of 
4 Thomas,’ ” chuckled Nancy. 

“ I don’t care. It’s as plain as the nose on 
your face ” 

“ Now, don’t get too personal,” begged Nancy, 
rubbing her nasal organ. “ Let’s wait and see.” 

“ But he may try to stop us, I tell you.” 

“ Not likely. And why? ” 

“ Oh ! you’ve asked that before,” cried Jennie, 
petulantly. 


3 04 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

But all they could do was to wait and see. Mr. 
Montgomery might not even notice them again, 
although he had intimated that he would speak 
to them when they arrived at the station. 

However, the two girls got off the train at their 
journey’s end without at once seeing the Senator. 
It was very early in the morning and the big train- 
shed seemed all but deserted. 

Nancy knew, however, that there was a cab 
stand just outside, and she and her chum hurried 
out to it. Before they could find a cabman or 
speak to the officer on duty in front of the build- 
ing, Mr. Montgomery came bustling up. 

“ Are you girls going immediately to Mr. Gor- 
don’s hotel?” he asked. 

“ Yes, sir,” replied Nancy. 

“ Come right along with me, then. I have a 
taxi waiting.” 

Jennie held back a little; yet even she did not 
see how they could refuse the offer. They 
followed him around the nearest corner, and so 
did not see a figure that shot panting across the 
square to the entrance of the station they had just 
left. 

This was a youth whose hair, even in the early 
morning light, displayed all the fiery hue of sun- 
rise. It was Scorch — but for once Scorch was 
just too late. 


SCORCH “ ON THE JOB ” 


305 


Nancy and Jennie were out of sight with the 
“ man in gray ” before the boy reached the rail- 
way station in answer to Nancy’s telegram. 

Mr. Montgomery escorted the two girls to a 
cab standing in a dark street. It seemed to have 
been waiting some time, for its engine was not 
running and the chauffeur was pacing the walk. 

Possibly Mr. Montgomery had done some tele- 
graphing ahead, too. 

“ Get right in here, girls,” he said. “ Lucky 
I was coming on the same train with you. Your 
folks will certainly be worried about you.” 

“ Now, wasn’t that a funny thing for him to 
say? ” asked Jennie, as she stepped in after Nancy. 

There was no chance for Nancy to reply, how- 
ever, for Mr. Montgomery was close upon their 
heels. The chauffeur jumped to his seat, the door 
slammed, and the cab was off. 

“How far is it to Garvan’s Hotel?” asked 
Nancy. 

“ It’s some distance,” replied Mr. Montgomery. 
“ I only hope Gordon is not hurt as badly as the 
paper says. Of course, if he is in the hands of 
doctors and nurses they may refuse to let any of 
us see him.” 

“ Oh! I hope not! ” exclaimed Nancy. 

“ We can wait till he’s better, then,” Jennie 
suggested. “ John will be in town this morning 


3 o 6 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

and we’ll go to his office and then go home with 
him and wait until you can see Mr. Gordon.” 

Mr. Montgomery snorted, but said nothing. 
Indeed, he seemed very glum after they were in 
the cab. 

What a distance it did seem to Garvan’s Hotel l 
The cab traveled at high speed, for there was 
not much traffic at this hour and the few police- 
men paid no attention. 

“ This isn’t at all the part of the city I thought 
Mr. Gordon lived in,” observed Nancy, once. 

Mr. Montgomery made no comment. Jennie 
squeezed her chum’s hand and sat closer to her. 
To tell the truth, Jennie was getting a little fright- 
ened. 

The cab passed through a web of narrow 
streets. The girls, although they knew something 
about the city, were soon at sea as far as the local- 
ity was concerned. 

“ Where are we?” cried Nancy, at last. 

“We have arrived,” spoke the Senator, harshly. 
“ Jump out. I’ll take you right indoors. I have 
been here to see Gordon before.” 

“ But — but this doesn’t look like a hotel,” mur- 
mured Nancy, first to reach the sidewalk. 

The houses were rows of mean-looking, three- 
story brick edifices. They were in a narrow street 
near the corner of a wider thoroughfare. 


307 


SCORCH “ ON THE JOB ” 

“ This is the side entrance,” said the Senator, 
and taking the girls firmly by the arm, ushered 
them up the steps of the nearest house. 

He did not even have to knock. Somebody 
must have been on watch, for the door swung; 
open instantly. 

Neither Nancy nor Jennie saw the person who» 
opened the door. It was very dark in the hall. 

“ How is our patient?” asked Mr. Montgom- 
ery, rather loudly, as they stepped in. 

“ Not very well — not very well,” said a wheezy 
voice. “ You can go right up to that room, sir — 
the sitting room. Ahem! You’ll have to see 
the doctor before you can speak with Mr. — 
Mr. ” 

“ Mr. Gordon,” said the Senator, briskly. 
“ All right, girls. Hurry upstairs.” 

Nancy and Jennie were quite confused. They 
did just as they were urged to do by Senator 
Montgomery. At the top of the flight he pushed 
open a door and the chums went into the room. 
The curtains were drawn. One feeble gas jet was 
burning. It was a fusty-smelling, cluttered room, 
furnished with odds and ends of old furniture and 
hangings. 

“ I’ll be with you directly,” said Mr. Mont- 
gomery, and closed the door. 

“ Oh ! ” squealed Jennie. 


3 o8 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ Did you hear it?” whispered Nancy, seizing 
her chum. 

The key had been turned in the lock. They 
tried the knob — first one shook it and then the 
other. The door could not be opened and there 
did not seem to be another door leading out of 
the room. 

“ He’s locked us in! ” said Nancy, amazed. 

“ I knew he was a villain ! ” declared Jennie, 
with a vicious snap of her teeth. “ Isn’t he just 
like Grace? ” 

“But — but how dares he do such a thing?” 
gasped Nancy. 

“ He’s a rich man — he can do anything. Or, 
he thinks he can,” returned Jennie. “ But you 
wait till my father gets hold of him ! ” 

“ Do — do you suppose he’ll dare do us any 
bodily harm? ” queried Nancy, anxiously. “ Oh ! 
I wish I hadn’t got you into it, Jennie.” 

“ Stuff and nonsense ! ” exclaimed the more reck- 
less Jennie. “ He only wants to keep you from 
seeing Gordon.” 

“But— what for?” 

“ He’s afraid Mr. Gordon will weaken and 
tell you all about yourself,” responded her prac- 
tical chum. “ That’s plain enough.” 

“Oh, dear, me! do you think so? And sup- 
pose poor Mr. Gordon dies?” 


309 


SCORCH “ ON THE JOB ” 

“ Then you’ll never know who you really are, 
Nance. At least, you can be sure Grace’s father 
will never tell you.” 

“ If he knows.” 

“ If he doesn’t know, and isn’t afraid of your 
finding out, what does he bother with us this way 
for?” demanded Jennie, angrily. 

“ Maybe we can get out of the window? ” 

“ It’s at the back of the house. We couldn’t 
get out of the yard.” 

“ Let’s scream.” 

“Who’d hear us here? Might as well save 
our breath,” said Jennie. 

“ I — I wish Scorch was here,” declared Nancy. 

“ So do I — with all my heart. Bless his red 
head! He’d get us out of this in short order.” 

As she spoke there came a tapping on one of 
the window-panes. Jennie and Nancy both ran 
to the window, drew aside the heavy curtain and 
raised the shade. 

Only a little light filtered in. But it was suffi- 
cient to show them a pale face flattened against 
the glass. 

The face suddenly grinned widely. Then a 
hand waved. They saw his red hair under his 
cap, and the two girls clung together with a cry 
of delight. 

Scorch O’Brien was “ on the job.” 


CHAPTER XXIX 


ALL ABOUT NANCY 

The red-haired youth drew himself up to the 
window-sill (he had climbed a rickety arbor 
below) and motioned to the girls to unlock the 
sashes. They did so and Scorch forced up the 
lower one. 

“ Hist! ” he whispered, in a tone so hoarse that 
it almost choked him. “Where is he?” 

“ We don’t know,” said Jennie, hastily. “’He’s 
locked us into this room.” 

“ Of course he would,” said Scorch, airily. 
“ Don’t they always do that? It’s the gray man; 
isn’t it? ” 

“Yes, yes!” said Nancy. “Senator Mont- 
gomery.” 

“ That’s the man. I got onto his name lately. 
And I seen him again, too. Now he’ll keep you 
from Mr. Gordon.” 

“Is he hurt very badly?” asked Nancy, an- 
xiously. 

“ You bet he is ! ” 

“ Oh, Scorch ! ” 


310 


ALL ABOUT NANCY 


3ii 

u But you’re goin’ to have a chance to talk with 
him first. He’ll see you, too. He told me so 
only last evening. I was with him all night. 
Then I ran home for breakfast and found your 
telegram. Then I beat it for the station. But 
you’d got away before I got there.” 

“ Senator Montgomery came down on the train 
with us,” explained Nancy. “ And he said he was 
coming right to Garvan’s Hotel to see Mr. Gor- 
don This is not the hotel; is it, Scorch?” 

“ I should say not! ” returned the boy. “ He 
fooled you. I asked among the cabmen at the 
station, and they all saw you and the gray man. 
So I knowed there was trouble afoot. 

“ He took you around the corner, and there a 
milkman saw you all getting into the taxi. So I 
grabs another taxi — I had money belongin’ to 
Old — to Mr. Gordon — in my pocket. 

“ That taxi-driver was a keen one, he was. He 
trailed your machine like he was trackin’ a band 
of Injuns. Cops saw you pass, and switchmen at 
the trolley crossin’s. 

“ So we got here just as the taxi was whiskin’ 
his nibs away ” 

“ Then he’s not in the house? ” 

“ I knew he wasn’t when I asked,” said Scorch, 
calmly. “ He’s beat it for Garvan’s. That’s 
where we’ll go, too.” 


312 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

“ Oh, Scorch!” cried Jennie. “You’re won- 
derful. How you going to get us out?” 

“ Not by the window, I hope,” murmured 
Nancy. 

“ Of course not,” the young man replied. 
“ See here.” 

He produced from either trousers leg the two 
parts of a jointed steel bar. It went together 
with a sharp click and proved to be a burglar’s 
“ jimmy ” of the most approved pattern. 

“ Scorch O’Brien ! Where did you get that 
thing?” demanded Nancy. “You could be ar- 
rested with it in your possession.” 

“ Forget it,” advised Scorch, easily. “ My 
next-door neighbor is a cop. He let me have it, 
and I’ll show you how to use it.” 

The youth went to the single door of the room, 
inserted the point of the bar between door and 
frame near the lock, and the next moment the 
dry wood gave way, splintering all around the 
lock. The door came open at a touch. 

“Sup — suppose they stop us?” breathed Jen- 
nie, trembling. 

“Let ’em try!” exclaimed the valiant Scorch, 
and led the way into the dark hall. 

They marched downstairs, the girls clinging to- 
gether and trembling, without a soul appearing 
to dispute their advance. The outside door was 


ALL ABOUT NANCY 


3i3 

chained; but Scorch had no difficulty in opening 
it. And so they passed on out into the grimy 
street just after sunrise. 

The house was merely an old, ill-kept lodging 
house, the person who ran it being under some 
sort of obligation to Senator Montgomery. The 
girls never learned what street it was on. 

44 My taxi’s waiting,” said Scorch, proudly, 
hurrying them around the corner. 44 Come on, 
before it eats its head off and breaks me.” 

“Oh, I’ve got money, Scorch!” cried Nancy. 

44 All right. You may need it later.” 

The taxi-cab driver paid no attention to the 
girls as they got in. Scorch took his seat beside 
him, and they were off. In a very few minutes they 
stopped at Garvan’s Hotel, in a much better-look- 
ing neighborhood, and Scorch paid for the cab. 

44 Come on, now, and let me do the talking,” 
said the red-headed youth. 44 That gray man is 
ahead of us; but he isn’t the whole thing around 
this hotel. They know me better than they do 
him.” 

Nobody sought to stop them, however. They 
went up in the elevator and got out at the third 
floor. Scorch led the way along the corridor, and 
suddenly turned the knob of a door without knock- 
ing. The door was unlocked. 

44 Here ! What do you want in here, young 


3 i4 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

man?” snapped a voice that Nancy and Jennie 
recognized. 

It was Senator Montgomery. Scorch pushed 
ahead. 

‘‘I must see Mr. Gordon,” he said. “ Tve 
been with him ever since he was brought in from 
the wreck. I’m takin’ my orders from him.” 

“ He is in no fit shape to give orders. You 
can’t see him ” 

He broke off with a startled cry when he saw 
the girls. 

“Where — where did they come from?” he 
gasped. 

“ Right from where you locked them in, Mis- 
ter,” replied the boy, boldly. “ But you didn’t 
count on me; did you? I was on the job. Mr. 
Gordon has asked to see Nancy Nelson, and he’s 
going to see her.” 

“ You young scoundrel! ” exclaimed the man in 
gray. “ I’ll have you arrested for breaking and 
entering.” 

“ All right, sir,” returned the youth, quite 
calmly, but walking swiftly to the window of the 
room. “See yonder, Mister? See that cop on 
the corner? Well, that’s Mike Dugan. He’s 
my next-door neighbor. And if you were the 
President of the United States, instead of a sena- 
tor, Mike Dugan would be a bigger man than you. 


ALL ABOUT NANCY 315 

“Understand? Nancy Nelson sees Mr. Gor- 
don just as soon as the nurse says it’s all right. 
You try to interfere and I’ll call my friend up 
here ! ” 

The inner door opened and a white-capped 
nurse appeared. 

“Not so much talking, please!” she said, 
severely. “ You are disturbing Mr. Gordon. 
Has the girl appeared yet? ” 

Nancy Nelson ran forward. Senator Mont- 
gomery tried to stop her; but Scorch was right in 
his path. 

“ Stand back! ” exclaimed the red-haired youth, 
emulating his favorite heroes of fiction. “ She’s 
a-going to see him ! ” 

“ Of course she is,” said the nurse, taking 
Nancy’s hand. “ I believe it will do him more 
good than anything else. He is worried about 
something, and if he relieves his mind, the 
doctor says, he has a very good chance of re- 
covering.” 

“ He’s mad. He’s not fit to talk with anyone,” 
declared Senator Montgomery, as the door closed 
behind Nancy and the nurse stood on guard. 

The man was dripping with perspiration and 
showed every evidence of panic. 

“ Say, boss,” advised Scorch, “ if Mr. Gor- 
don is likely to tell anything that is goin’ to in- 


316 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

criminate you, as the newspapers puts it, take my 
tip: Get away while you can.” 

And whether because of Scorch’s word, or for 
other reasons, Mr. Montgomery tiptoed from the 
room, and was not seen again about the hotel. 
Nancy and Jennie remained, however, for several 
days, being assigned to a room next to Mr. Gor- 
don’s suite. 

Just what passed between the injured man and 
Nancy Nelson nobody but the two will ever know. 
Nancy did not tell everything even to her chum. 
But Mr. Bruce likewise had a long interview with 
the lawyer that very day and at once went to work 
under the injured man’s direction to obtain certain 
property which might be tampered with by those 
who had kept Nancy out of her rightful fortune 
for so long. 

Henry Gordon was equally guilty with his old 
partner, Montgomery. But the latter had bene- 
fited more largely from the crime, and Gordon had 
been a party to it under duress. 

Years before, when he lived in California, 
Henry Gordon had been tempted to commit a 
crime. Had it become known he never could 
have practised law again — in any state. Mont- 
gomery knew of the lawyer’s slip and held it over 
him. 

The Senator’s wife had a sister who was mar- 


ALL ABOUT NANCY 


3U 


ried to a very wealthy man — Arnold Nelson. It 
was supposed that Mr. Nelson’s family — himself, 
his wife, and little daughter — had died suddenly 
of a fever during an epidemic in a coast town. 

With the child dead, the entire property be- 
longing to the Nelsons came to Senator Montgom- 
ery’s wife, and he had the handling of it. But 
Gordon, who had known and loved, as a young 
man, Nancy’s mother, after the parents’ death 
found the deserted little girl, placed her with Miss 
Prentice at Higbee School, and forced Montgom- 
ery to pay, year by year, for the child’s board and 
education. 

Where Nancy was, Montgomery did not know 
until he came across her at Pinewood Hall. Gor- 
don had no idea that the Senator intended sending 
his own daughter to Pinewood, too. 

So that, in brief, was the story the broken and 
injured lawyer told his charge. Later he ex- 
plained more fully to Mr. Bruce, Jennie’s father, 
and with the aid of good counsel, Mr. Bruce made 
the Montgomerys disgorge the great fortune that 
they had withheld from Nancy’s use all these 
years. 

In the end Mr. Gordon did not die. He re- 
mained an invalid for some time, but slowly re- 
covered. Nancy, by that time, had become such 
a necessity to him that he went to Clintondale for 


3 i8 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

the weeks of convalescence when the doctors re- 
fused to let him get back into legal harness again. 

He was really a changed man. He could not 
act as Nancy’s guardian; Mr. Bruce, Jennie’s 
father, did that. But there was scarcely a pleasant 
afternoon during the remainder of Nancy’s junior 
year, while Mr. Gordon was at Clintondale, that 
a very red-haired youth, in a smart auto outfit, 
did not drive up to the school entrance in a little 
runabout, and whisk Nancy down to the village 
hotel to see Mr. Gordon for an hour or so. 

And Nancy learned to like Mr. Gordon better 
than she had ever expected to when she first 
bearded the lion in his den. 


CHAPTER XXX 


NO LONGER A NOBODY 

After Jennie Bruce’s father, on behalf of 
Nancy, made his first demand upon Senator Mont- 
gomery in reprisal of the latter’s diversion of 
Nancy’s fortune, Grace Montgomery disappeared 
suddenly from Pinewood Hall. 

It had been so sudden that the girls — especially 
those who had been so friendly with her — could 
scarcely recover from the shock. 

At first, when Nancy and Jennie had gone off 
at midnight, it was rumored around the school 
(said rumor starting from Cora Rathmore’s 
room) that the two chums had been expelled for 
holding an “ orgy ” after hours. And there was 
nobody to contradict this statement, eagerly re- 
peated by the Montgomery clique, until Jennie 
came back. 

She was bound not to tell Nancy’s secret, how- 
ever; otherwise Grace Montgomery would have 
“ sung small.” The latter, however, was her bold 
and mischievous self right up to the very day — 
some weeks later — when she received a long letter 
from her heart-broken mother. 


319 


320 A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 

Mrs. Montgomery had never known the truth 
about her sister’s child. It became known some- 
how that Grace’s mother begged Grace to make 
a friend of Nancy and try to influence her to make 
her lawyer’s demands less severe upon the Senator, 
for his fortune was toppling. 

But Grace would never have done this. She 
had talked of, and to, Nancy Nelson too out- 
rageously. She could not have asked a favor of 
the girl she so disliked — whom she doubly disliked 
now ! 

So she borrowed her fare of Madame Schakael 
and took the first train home; and Pinewood Hall 
never saw her again. Indeed, the girls she left 
behind scarcely heard of Grace Montgomery. 
She never wrote to Cora, even; and had Bob 
Endress not come over from Cornell for the New 
Year dance, Nancy and Jennie would not have 
heard much about her. 

“ They have all gone back to California,” said 
Bob, who did not at all understand the rights of 
the matter. “ Somehow the Senator has lost most 
of his money, and they had just enough left to 
buy a little fruit ranch down in the state some- 
where. Too bad!” 

Nancy did not explain. Why should she have 
injured his cousin in his estimation? But she and 
Bob remained very good friends. 


NO LONGER A NOBODY 


321 

Nancy lived quite as plainly as she had before. 
She saw no reason for changing her mode of living 
because the lawyers told her there were great 
sums of money in store for her. 

That summer, however, she did insist on taking 
the entire Bruce family to the mountains as her 
guests; for they had been very kind to her, and 
that while she was still “ A Little Miss Nobody.” 

Mr. Gordon had gone back to his practice ere 
this. He was much aged in appearance and would 
always walk with a limp; but his confidential clerk, 
a certain red-haired youth in whom Jennie Bruce 
would always have a particular interest, was at 
hand to take the burden of work from the lawyer’s 
shoulders when need came. 

Perhaps Patrick Sarsfield O’Brien outstripped 
everybody else in the changes that came. In six 
months (during which he diligently applied him- 
self to the night school course) he shed his slang 
like a mantle. Instead of cheap detective stories 
hidden in his desk, he had text-books. 

He is, in fact, a rising young man, and will be a 
good lawyer some day. Mr. Gordon is very 
proud of him. 

And so is Nancy. Scorch was her first friend, 
and she will never forget him or cease to be in- 
terested in his growth and welfare. 

Nancy and Jennie are climbing the scholastic 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


322 

hill together. Already the girls and teachers of the 
Hall are beginning to brag about Nancy Nelson. 
She stands at the head of her class, she is stroke 
of the school eight, champion on the ice, and has 
won a state tennis championship medal in the 
yearly tournament of school clubs. She is no 
longer “ A Little Miss Nobody.” 

Yet she remains the same gentle, rather timid 
girl she always was. She can fight for the rights 
of others; but she does not put forth her own 
claims to particular attention. 

“ Pshaw ! You let folks walk all over you just 
the same as ever, Nance! ” her chum, Jennie, de- 
clares. “ Haven’t you any spunk? ” 

“ I — I don’t want to fight them,” Nancy replies. 

“ Goodness to gracious and eight hands 
around!” ejaculates Jennie, with exasperation. 
“ If it hadn’t been for Scorch and me you’d never 
got hold of your fortune and sent the Montgom- 
erys back to the tall pines. You know you 
wouldn’t! ” 

But Nancy only smiles at that. She doesn’t 
mind having her chum take for herself a big share 
of the credit for this happy outcome of her 
affairs. 


THE END 


SOMETHING ABOUT 

AMY BELL MARLOWE 

AND HER BOOKS FOR GIRLS 

In these days, when the printing presses are 
turning out so many books for girls that are good, 
bad and indifferent, it is refreshing to come upon 
the works of such a gifted authoress as Miss Amy 
Bell Marlowe, who is now under contract to write 
exclusively for Messrs. Grosset & Dunlap. 

In many ways Miss Marlowe’s books may be 
compared with those of Miss Alcott and Mrs. 
Meade, but all are thoroughly modern and wholly 
American in scene and action. Her plots, while 
never improbable, are exceedingly clever, and her 
girlish characters are as natural as they are inter- 
esting. 

On the following pages will be found a list 
of Miss Marlowe’s books. Every girl in our 
land ought to read these fresh and wholesome 
tales. They are to be found at all booksellers. 
Each volume is handsomely illustrated and bound 
in cloth, stamped in colors. Published by Grosset 
& Dunlap, New York. A free catalogue of Miss 
Marlowe’s books may be had for the asking. 


THE OLDEST OF FOUR 


“ I don't see any way out! ” 

It was Natalie’s mother who said that, after 
the awful news had been received that Mr. Ray- 
mond had been lost in a shipwreck on the Atlantic. 
Natalie was the oldest of four children, and the 
family was left with but scant means for support. 

“ I’ve got to do something — yes, I’ve just got 
to ! ” Natalie said to herself, and what the brave 
girl did is well related in “The Oldest of Four; 
Or, Natalie’s Way Out.” In this volume we 
find Natalie with a strong desire to become a 
writer. At first she contributes to a local paper, 
but soon she aspires to larger things, and comes 
in contact with the editor of a popular magazine. 
This man becomes her warm friend, and not only 
aids her in a literary way but also helps in a hunt 
for the missing Mr. Raymond. 

Natalie has many ups and downs, and has to 
face more than one bitter disappointment. But 
she is a plucky girl through and through. 

“ One of the brightest girls’ stories ever 
penned,” one well-known author has said of this 
book, and we agree with him. Natalie is a 
thoroughly lovable character, and one long to be 
remembered. Published as are all the Amy Bell 
Marlowe books, by Grosset & Dunlap, New 
York, and for sale by all booksellers. Ask your 
dealer to let you look the volume over. 


THE GIRLS OF HILLCREST FARM 


“ We'll go to the old farm, and we’ll take 
boarders! We can fix the old place up, and, 
maybe, make money ! ” 

The father of the two girls was broken down 
in health and a physician had recommended that 
he go to the country, where he could get plenty 
of fresh air and sunshine. An aunt owned an 
abandoned farm and she said the family could 
live on this and use the place as they pleased. 
It was great sport moving and getting settled, 
and the boarders offered one surprise after an- 
other. There was a mystery about the old farm, 
and a mystery concerning one of the boarders, 
and how the girls got to the bottom of affairs 
is told in detail in the story, which is called, u The 
Girls of Hillcrest Farm; Or, The Secret of the 
Rocks.” 

It was great fun to move to the farm, and once 
the girls had the scare of their lives. And they 
attended a great “ vendue ” too. 

“ I just had to write that story — I couldn’t help 
it,” said Miss Marlowe, when she handed in the 
manuscript. “ I knew just such a farm when I 
was a little girl, and oh! what fun I had there! 
And there was a mystery about that place, too ! ” 

Published, like all the Marlowe books, by 
Grosset & Dunlap, New York, and for sale wher- 
ever good books are sold. 

3 


A LITTLE MISS NOBODY 


“ Oh, she’s only a little nobody ! Don’t have 
anything to do with her! ” 

How often poor Nancy Nelson heard those 
words, and how they cut her to the heart. And 
the saying was true, she was a nobody. She had 
no folks, and she did not know where she had 
come from. All she did know was that she was 
at a boarding school and that a lawyer paid her 
tuition bills and gave her a mite of spending 
money. 

“ I am going to find out who I am, and where 
I came from,” said Nancy to herself, one day, 
and what she did, and how it all ended, is ab- 
sorbingly related in “A Little Miss Nobody; 
Or, With the Girls of Pinewood Hall.” Nancy 
made a warm friend of a poor office boy who 
worked for that lawyer, and this boy kept his 
eyes and ears open and learned many things. 

The book tells much about boarding school 
life, of study and fun mixed, and of a great race 
on skates. Nancy made some friends as well as 
enemies, and on more than one occasion proved 
that she was “ true blue ” in the best meaning 
of that term. 

Published by Grosset & Dunlap, New York, 
and for sale by booksellers everywhere. If you 
desire a catalogue of Amy Bell Marlowe books 
send to the publishers for it and it will come free. 

4 


THE GIRL FROM SUNSET RANCH 


Helen was very thoughtful as she rode along 
the trail from Sunset Ranch to the View. She 
had lost her father but a month before, and 
he had passed away with a stain on his name — 
a stain of many years’ standing, as the girl had just 
found out. 

“ I am going to New York and I am going to 
clear his name ! ” she resolved, and just then she 
saw a young man dashing along, close to the edge 
of a cliff. Over he went, and Helen, with no 
thought of the danger to herself, went to the 
rescue. 

Then the brave Western girl found herself set 
down at the Grand Central Terminal in New 
York City. She knew not which way to go or 
what to do. Her relatives, who thought she was 
poor and ignorant, had refused to even meet her. 
She had to fight her way along from the start, 
and how she did this, and won out, is well related 
in “The Girl from Sunset Ranch; Or, Alone in 
a Great City.” 

This is one of the finest of Amy Bell Marlowe’s 
books, with its true-to-life scenes of the plains 
and mountains, and of the great metropolis. 
Helen is a girl all readers will love from the 
start. 

Published by Grosset & Dunlap, New York, 
and for sale by booksellers everywhere. 

5 


WYN’S CAMPING DAYS 


“ Oh, girls, such news ! ” cried Wynifred Mal- 
lory to her chums, one day. “We can go camp- 
ing on Lake Honotonka ! Isn’t it grand ! ” 

It certainly was, and the members of the Go- 
Ahead Club were delighted. Soon they set off, 
with their boy friends to keep them company in 
another camp not far away. Those boys played 
numerous tricks on the girls, and the girls re- 
taliated, you may be sure. And then Wyn did 
a strange girl a favor, and learned how some 
ancient statues of rare value had been lost in the 
lake, and how the girl’s father was accused of 
stealing them. 

“ We must do all we can for that girl,” said 
Wyn. But this was not so easy, for the girl 
campers had many troubles of their own. They 
had canoe races, and one of them fell overboard 
and came close to drowning, and then came a big 
storm, and a nearby tree was struck by lightning. 

“ I used to love to go camping when a girl, and 
I love to go yet,” said Miss Marlowe, in speaking 
of this tale, which is called, “ Wyn’s Camping 
Days; Or, The Outing of the Go-Ahead Club.” 
“ I think all girls ought to know the pleasures of 
summer life under canvas.” 

A book that ought to be in the hands of all 
girls. Issued by Grosset & Dunlap, New York, 
and for sale by booksellers everywhere. 

6 


THE OUTDOOR GIRLS SERIES 

By LAURA LEE HOPE 


AUTHOR OF THE EVER POPULAR "BOBBSEY TWINS BOOKS’’ 


12mo. CLOTH ILLUSTRATED PRICE PER VOLUME 40 CENTS, POSTPAID 


These tales take in the various adventures participated in 
by several bright, up-to-date girls who love outdoor life. They 
are clean and wholesome, free from sensationalism, absorbing 
from the first chapter to the last. 

THE OUTDOOR GIRLS OF DEEPDALE 
Or Camping and Tramping for Fun and Health. 

Telling how the girls organized their Camping and Tramping Club, 
how they went on a tour, and of various adventures which befell them. 

THE OUTDOOR GIRLS AT RAINBOW LAKE 
Or Stirring Cruise of the Motor Boat Gem. 

One of the girls becomes the proud possessor of a motorboat and 
at once invites her club members to take a trip with her down the 
river to Rainbow Lake, a beautiful sheet of water lying between the 
mountains. 

THE OUTDOOR GIRLS IN A MOTOR CAR 
Or The Haunted Mansion of Shadow Valley. 

One of the girls has learned to run a big motor car, and she invites 
the club to go on a tour with her, to visit some distant relatives. On 
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THE OUTDOOR GIRLS IN A WINTER CAMP 
Or Glorious Days on Skates and Ice Boats. 

In this story, the scene is shifted to a winter season. The girls 
have some jolly times skating and ice boating, and visit a hunters 
camp in the big woods. 

THE OUTDOOR GIRLS IN FLORIDA 
Or Wintering in the Sunny South. 

The parents of one of the girls have bought an orange grove in 
Florida, and her companions are invited to visit the place. , They do 
so, and take a trip into the wilds of the interior, where several unusual 
things happen. 


Grosset & Dunlap, 526 West 26th St., New York 


THE GIRLS OF CENTRAL 
HIGH SERIES 

By GERTRUDE W. MORRISON 


12mo CLOTH, ILLUSTRATED. PRICE PER VOLUME 40 CENTS, POSTPAID 


Here is a series full of the spirit of high school life of 
to-day. The girls are real flesh-and-blood characters, and we 
follow them with interest in school and out. There are many 
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THE GIRLS OF CENTRAL HIGH 
Or Rivals for all Honors. 

A stirring tale of high school life, full of fun, with a touch of 
mystery and a strange initiation. 

THE GIRLS OF CENTRAL HIGH ON LAKE LUNA 
Or The Crew That Won. 

Telling of water sports and fun galore, and of fine times in camp. 

THE GIRLS OF CENTRAL HIGH AT BASKETBALL 
Or The Great Gymnasium Mystery. 

Here we have a number of thrilling contests at basketball and in 
addition, the solving of a mystery which had bothered the high school 
authorities for a long while. 

THE GIRLS OF CENTRAL HIGH ON THE STAGE 
Or The Play That Took the Prize. 

How the girls went in for theatricals and how one of them wrote 
a play which afterward was made over for the professional stage and 
brought in some much-needed money. 

THE GIRLS OF CENTRAL HIGH ON TRACK AND FIELD 
Or The Girl Champions of the School League. 

This story takes in high school athletics in their most approved 
and up-to-date fashion. Full of fun and excitement. 


Grosset & Dunlap, 526 West 26th St., New York 
















